We're Not Monsters, Act II
by knittcapkneepad
Summary: Freddy awakes to his new home, far from the Fazbear diner, only to realize he has been left to decay. In his prison where others have given up hope, Freddy seeks advice from a stranger with a painted smile and hollow eyes who may know what happened all those years ago.
1. The Reawakening

_Hello once again, everybody! This is the second, and last, installment of 'We're Not Monsters'. If you haven't read the first half, you can find it on my profile! This second part is about the events of 'Five Nights at Freddy's 2', when we meet our gang at the Fazbear Pizzeria. I hope you enjoy! I had a lot of fun writing this._

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Freddy surfaced from his deep sleep as one would surface through a sea of oil; desperate and scared. Memories flood through his processors, overloading his circuits in the process. His body, reanimated by a flash of power, was stiff from disuse and the effects of time. Clumsily, Freddy stumbled from his power unit and fell weak to the floor. His giant hands, trembling with anger, balled into fists as all that Freddy could think of was Maggie Fazbear.

"Freddy…?"

"Freddy!"

A hook and hand seized him upon the floor, clutching at his body to still the fit of seizures the bear's servers were experiencing. When his body finally gained control, a soft weeping voice broke the silence between them all.

"She's not _gone_," Freddy stressed the words, hardly finding the strength to say them.

"Mate…"

Chica wrapped her arms about one of Freddy's. "We'll be talking more about that later," with a heave, she drew up the bear from the floor. "Just take it easy, there's a bench over here you can sit on."

Carefully, the two machines hoisted their brother up and walked him to the bench.

"You've been asleep for a long time, Freddy."

"… and a lot has happened."

Freddy's head rolled to a side and his piercing, blue eyes rolled up to meet the gaze of his companions. "…what do you mean?"

"It… it ain't easy to explain," Chica told him, nervously. "It'd be best if you just… see."

Foxy stood by Freddy's side as Chica neared the backroom curtains. With a gentle lift, she pulled back the curtain allowing a beam of light to shed through the darkness of the backroom. Beyond the curtain's veil was the steady laughter of children. Music flooded the air and there was happiness. Freddy sat with unbelieving eyes. A rift between time appeared before him as he saw the life he used to know. Weakly, he lifted himself from the bench and approached Chica's side to see the extent of this mirage.

"Where are we?"

"They're calling this 'Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria'. Someone bought us, Freddy!" Chica excitedly smiled as her voice carried the weight of hope. A hope that Freddy did not share.

"And what about Fred and Maria? Are we to just forget everything?" The bear pushed, the spark of anger fast behind his eyes, the like of which forced Chica to cower.

"That ain't what we're saying—" Foxy tried to no avail.

"—And what about Maggie?" Freddy shot back. "She's _out there_. Are we just supposed to forget about _her_?"

"Freddy—"

"—where's Bonnie?" Freddy asked as he caught a good glance around the backroom.

A still moment ran between the machines as Foxy and Chica shared a solemn glance. Without a word, they led their weak companion through the back hallways left in dust. Upon the venture, Freddy snuck more peeks through the curtains of time. Children were happy and playing. They danced around a stack of toys and books to the tune of a music box. At last, the three came to the final door. As Foxy opened the door, Chica stepped aside and turned her head away. Crouching against the far wall was Bonnie. His hands lifted and covered his head lowered in a bow. Foxy and Chica remained in the hall, giving the two the privacy to talk.

"… Bonnie?" Freddy hesitantly spoke before kneeling before the cowering rabbit.

"… go away."

"What's wrong?" The bear tried again. "You don't have to be afraid of me."

A shudder ran down Bonnie's back as his hands began to tremble against his brow. "It's not that," he quietly whispered, a cry beginning to rattle his voice box. "I don't want you to be afraid of _me_…"

Freddy's eyes shifted over Bonnie, searching and fearing what was being hidden from him. After a moment's pause, the bear's look returned to the hands that hid away Bonnie's face.

"Show me."

Slowly, Bonnie's fingers retreated. The rattling cry grew louder. They curled into his palms in the way spiders curl their legs upon death. Darkness took the place of his hands, and past that dark void shined two, red eyes. Glittering in their unnatural light were the frayed wires and boltless, metal bones of the rabbit's decaying body. Freddy felt himself retreat—but stunted the act. Still, he could not tear his eyes away from the vacant hole hollowed out of Bonnie's face.

"Bonnie…"

"Please," the trembling rabbit forced, "… I want to be alone."

Unwilling to push his friend any further, Freddy lifted to his feet and looked down upon the rabbit. "We'll fix you, Bonnie. I swear it."

There was no reply to his oath, but one was not needed. Freddy made his way out into the hall where Foxy and Chica waited. Unwilling to speak anymore of it, the bear declined to seek his companions' advice on the matter of Bonnie's condition, but instead walked onward in silence.

"There's something else you need to know, too," Chica quietly told Freddy as she bounced along in the attempt to keep up with the towering machine.

"What else can there be?" Freddy shot down the idea with haste. "I don't think I can handle anymore for today."

"Well," Foxy shrugged, "It's not particularly a _bad_ thing, mate."

"We'll have to wait until the place shuts down for the night to show you. You'll get a kick out of it, I bet." Chica smiled.

"—don't push your luck," Foxy laughed. "He'll be pleased, I wager. Nothin' more than that, love."

"Until night then," Freddy reluctantly agreed.

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It was late by the time the children left and the doors were closed. At last, Freddy was allowed to explore the rooms that still shined with the children's happiness. He looked upon their toys and their books, unable to believe that any of this was real. Across the building, Chica and Foxy led the bear until finally they came to the end of the hallway. At the other end of the hall, a light flooded a security room where a young man sat. His eyes flickered up past the monitors before greeting the machines.

"Being good, guys?" He asked in monotone.

While Freddy froze before his eyes, Chica walked up the hall before softly laughing, "As good as we can be, sir."

"Keep it up," the man sighed, turning his attention to a winding button that began to flash.

Chica returned to Freddy's side to see him staring down upon her with confusion streaming behind his eyes. Again, she laughed. "They let us walk around here. No need to hide or keep secrets anymore."

"Pretty good, eh?" Foxy smirked before tapping an elbow into the bear's arm. "Come along, then. There's a bit more."

Further they led Freddy who followed slowly behind. His eyes looked across the banners and posters. 'FAZBEAR' they read in bloated red letters. If this was truly a Fazbear store than why was he behind the curtains during opening hours? All these questions, and more, filled the machine's processors. That was until Freddy entered the room where Chica and Foxy waited.

Before him, there raised a small stage wrapped in streamers and colorful decorations, but it was not the stage that had him standing still in shock. Standing at the front of the stage, staring down at the original Freddy was a polished clone. Beside him, a mirror of Bonnie and Chica stood.

"What is this?" Freddy warily asked.

"Guess we were bought as blueprints to these gents." Foxy said as he crossed his arms about his chest. "They're like us in almost every way…"

"… Except they're more advanced," Chica finished with a glance. "They've got some chip in 'em. Something that taps into the police database. It lets them identify everyone. It scans all the adults and can stop them from hurting the children. Isn't this great, Freddy? They're really going to make a difference."

Freddy returned his eyes up to look upon the face of his _replacement_. Over a decade of memories and names, a decade of dedicated service… and he was left to rot. Beside him, those closest to him stood and they did not _care_. How could they not see it? How was this something to celebrate?

"This doesn't make any sense," Freddy began, trying to find the words as he looked over the Toy animatronics with distaste settling on his wires.

"We had a good run," Foxy told him. "But, we ain't the machines we used to be, mate. I don't want to live to see the day I become some collectible stuffed in a glass. They're letting us die with some dignity, old boy. It's best we could ask for."

"I am not _dying_," Freddy growled, "and I am not a toy to be manufactured. This isn't what Fred and Maria wanted."

"And how would you know that?" a voice came from the stage, causing the three original Fazbears to turn at the sound. Upon the stage, the toy bear came to life. Instead of glowing color emitting from the toys' eyes, there sat a single white light in wide darkness. "Fred and Maria wanted to bring happiness to children… that is what we are doing."

"Don't you _dare_ act like you knew them!" Freddy snapped. "You don't know what they would have wanted."

"And neither do you," the toy Chica reminded him.

"—maybe this wasn't the best idea," Foxy mumbled as he watched Freddy try to advance the stage with only a short Chica holding him back.

"Freddy," Chica warned. "Stop it. You've been through a lot, you just need to rest, dear."

The bear ripped his arm from Chica and gave her a glaring look before turning back toward the stage. "Fine—fine… you said you have power to access the police database."

"That is correct," the toy Freddy replied.

"You would know about crimes, wouldn't you? Reports filled, suspects… you could help me-"

"Our chips were not designed to infringe on the privacy of others," the toy Freddy replied, sternly. "Though we have been informed of your current situation. During your shutdown, you experienced power surges that fried your circuits. You are faulty in both action and mind. Not only are you unfit to perform, you are unfit to protect the children. Our chips will not be used so you may harm innocent humans."

"No one is innocent," Freddy shot back, angrily. "I could find Maggie with it… I can still fix this—fix everything."

"The knowledge of the child and the crime reside solely with the police department. The matter is now in their hands. All we can do now is protect the other children."

"—that's not good enough!" Freddy shouted.

"—that's it, c'mon," Foxy placed his hook against the curve of the bear's shoulder. "You're done for the night, mate. We'll talk more of it tomorrow."

As the hook rested down, Freddy shrugged his shoulder away. Without a word, the bear walked off down the hall. When Chica went to go after him, Foxy caught her hand and held her back. "He just needs a minute alone, love. He'll be all right."

With a nod, the two left the hall and walked back toward their backroom. Meanwhile, Freddy continued down the foreign halls. Against the ceilings, he saw security cameras swiveling back and forth. The lens adjusted and followed him as he walked, but he tried to pay it no mind. When Freddy came to the end of his walk, he sat upon a large, stripped armchair that sat vacant in the pizzeria's prize corner. Softly twinkling through the air was the soft sound of a music box. Perhaps that was what drove Freddy to find solace here. It reminded him of the song Maria used to hum as she sewed their suits. Such sweet memories were now tainted by the feeling of abandonment. Freddy's hands lifted to hold his head as he tried to suppress the sadness he was still unable to bear.

Slowly, the music box wound down until the last note played and haunted the stillness of the room. Lost to his own thoughts, Freddy did not hear the wooden door of a chest open nor did he hear the breath that brushed against his fingertips… but he did feel it. Hesitantly, Freddy lowered his hands. As his eyes lifted, he stared into the black, gaping eyes that danced so close to his face.

"Hello, Freddy."

Its voice was eerie and light as it dripped from the painted smile. As it drew back to stand, Freddy was allowed full sight of it. Its limbs were long and thin, like spider legs painted in black and white stripes, bending and folding against one another. Enthralled in his awe, Freddy did not speak, but the dancing figure did not seem to mind.

"It's been a while," it drawled as it floated across the room, its eyes never leaving Freddy's. "How are you?"

"Who are you?" Freddy asked, fearful of the answer.

"That doesn't matter now, does it?" The figure floated closer, its wires strung it up to the ceiling, but who was moving its wires? "No, I don't think so… but I know what does, oh yes, I do, I do."

"Then say it," Freddy demanded.

"The _children_, Freddy! It's the _children_. Aren't they the only ones that matter? Not their mothers or fathers, not their aunts or uncles—oh, no… not them, not them," the marionette purred a laugh. "It's the children, Freddy. Anyone else, why, they're expendable, don't you think?"

"What's your point?"

The face stopped dancing.

"What would you give to see Maggie again?"

Freddy's bolts froze. The frowning, painted face stared down over him—but wasn't that once a smile? There was a thick silence between them, a silence filled with fear and awe. No longer did Freddy wish to be here, but how was he expected to leave?

"What do you know about Maggie?" Freddy begged, to which the face only smiled.

"It's a beautiful night, isn't it?" The marionette sighed as it floated toward the door. "I believe it's time for my nightly stroll. You're power must be getting low, Freddy. Why don't you come back tomorrow and we'll speak more. I do love our visits."

With that, the marionette slithered out into the hall and was gone, leaving Freddy with more questions than answers.

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><p><em>I hope you enjoyed, and thanks for reading my work. It makes me happier you guys out there like it. Have a good one, and don't forget to review and yada...yada... :D <em>


	2. Haunted Memories

_I wanted to get this one up as soon as I could because I'm not sure when the next one will be up. I'm leaving for a week, heading toward New York. Unfortunately, that means in that time I may not be able to post. BUT! I am taking my laptop with to work on as many chapters as I can. Hope you enjoy!_

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The walk was silent and slow back toward the backroom. The quietness that Freddy found was soon filled with the questions he still could not answer. Upon his return to his power unit, he felt the weight of Chica's and Foxy's eyes following him, but he was too tired and too deep in thought to answer their concerns. As he began his shutdown for the night, he thought of that painted face and the words it spoke. Despite its sentient nature, it was no machine—Freddy was certain of that—which leaves the question:

If it is not human or machine… what is it?

He was unsure, but driven to discover the answer. Perhaps it shared the advanced chip the other toy animatronics had… somehow. No matter how tired the bear seemed to be, he could not stop his processors from replaying the eerie scene set in the prize corner. Freddy slumped, shutting down his external power to hide within his metal shell, to remember all that he had ever seen—all that he had ever done that led him to this moment. He saw Maggie, dirtied and crying on the pavement. He saw the man—the men—who caused the little girl to run to him for protection. Their faces were branded against his servers, scorched and black against rusting metal. For hours, he played the audio and video feed he was able to access, memorizing their faces and their names.

They took Maggie from him.

And he didn't stop them.

As Freddy slowly succumbed to the darkness of the night, his last waking moment was filled only with hatred.

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"You can't sleep all day," Chica said as she lightly shook the bear's shoulders. "I want to show you something."

Freddy roused, his body left weak from exerting so much power through the night. It was difficult for him to match the enthusiasm of his small companion. "Thank you, Chica," Freddy whispered as he stretched his beams and wires, "but I think I've seen enough of this place."

Chica rolled her eyes before a smile softly lit her face. "Quit your mopin'. This is different, cross my heart."

Unable to refuse the southern chick, Freddy lifted himself from his power unit and followed the bouncing, yellow machine. Again, they passed the curtains that hid them from the outside world, and again Freddy peeked out to see the children. It was a birthday party. Cakes were brought out to the table and the little children rejoiced. It was not the children that held Freddy's attention, but the adults that stood nearby. He looked over their faces, wondering if he had seen them before. Silently, he searched for the men from his memories of the diner. What should be a happy day only became tainted by Freddy's paranoia.

"… Look."

Freddy turned his head away to see Chica waiting in front of a wall of framed pictures. Most of them he did not recognize, except one. The bear hesitated before stepping closer. His eyes searched across the faded faces that smiled out at him. There was happiness in this picture, a happiness that Freddy nearly forgot.

"Do you remember this?" Chica asked. "I almost forgot myself."

With soft fingers, the bear touched the photograph of a family standing before a well-lit stage where three smiling machines played. A father and mother and in their arms—

"Maggie."

Chica watched as an array of emotions coursed behind her leader's eyes, emotions that she was not yet able to experience. Her eyes returned to the photograph of the Fazbears before she said, "We're a family, Freddy. You told me that once. We've lost a piece of that family and we may never get them back."

The floodgates of Freddy's misery opened and he began to tremble.

"…but," Chica continued, "We still have each other, don't we? We love you, Freddy, and we're here for you. All you have to do is let us in." Her small hand reached to hold his own. "Please, don't lock us away."

They stood in silence, their hands entwined in the same way their eyes were. The protective walls that Freddy erected after the tragedy in the diner began to crumble at the power of his young companion's compassion.

"Chica, I…"

"What's going on here?" A voice cooed causing Freddy and Chica to jump in surprise. From the entrance of the room, Foxy leaned himself against the door with his gleaming teeth showing through a proud grin. "Am I, perchance, interrupting something?"

Chica opened her mouth to speak, but Freddy's words came first. "No, I believe we just finished."

"Good," Foxy chirped. "I've been settin' to the task of rebuilding the lad's face… or what's left of it. Thought you might give me a hand as it seems you need two to do anything worthwhile," Foxy twirled his hook with a thoughtful glance.

"Of course," Freddy answered. Before he followed the pirate from the room, he stopped to look back at the chick. "Thank you."

Her shoulders shrugged as a smile lit her face. "Go and play with the boys. If you ever need to chat, I'll be right here."

With a nod, Freddy stepped out into the hallway in chase of Foxy.

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The day slipped through Freddy's fingers as he and Foxy busied themselves scrounging for metal and tools. Their work was difficult, but they made do with what they had. Luckily, upon Freddy's search he found the frayed skin of Bonnie's suit that had been removed. With luck, it would be an easy fix. If he could find a wire thin enough to thread, he could repair the rabbit to his previous state, but that was a job for another day. It was late when Freddy finally left the rabbit's room. Plans for Bonnie's reconstruction swarmed Freddy's thoughts, and for that, he was thankful. Upon reentering their backroom, Freddy saw that Chica had already powered down for the night. For a moment, Freddy stood in thought as he looked upon the peaceful face of the plump, little chick. We're a family, he told himself. And it was time for him to start acting like it. With a lingering glance down the hallway where answers may lay, Freddy decided against his own wants and instead focused on the needs of his family.

Carefully, the bear lowered himself to the floor to rest.

With hope, he would find the peace he needed and with that, the light faded from his eyes and he fell asleep.

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Through the stillness of the night, the music box chimed.

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The music grew louder, lulling Freddy's worn servers.

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It was when the music began to die, that in Freddy's sleeping state he felt _fear_.

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The light breathed life into his eyes, slowly burning through the darkness. He found himself standing in the middle of a room with a hand lying atop a small box. Bewildered with dread, Freddy lifted his hand to see the music box beneath his palm. Before he had time to understand what he had done, a quiet voice sent shivers through his wires.

"Hello again, Freddy."

The bear turned quick to see the advancing white face dance before his eyes. He stumbled back, attempting to put distance between them, but failing to do so. "H-how did I…"

"Isn't it amazing what machines are capable of?" The white face asked with admiration. "Much like humans, we follow the sounds of our heart. How odd that your heart led you back to me."

"I don't have a heart," Freddy told the marionette. "And neither do you."

"Well," the face drew back, floating around the room as it had the night before. "I suppose that is up for debate, don't you think?"

Freddy did not try to understand what force drew him here nor did he care to go rounds with this strange creation. "You said you had answers."

"Yes."

"Tell me then. What do you know?" Freddy demanded, his anger rising.

"It's simple, really, when you think back. Faces stand out, don't they, Freddy? You've thought of them. You _saw_ them. Don't try and tell me you don't know."

While the face floated away, laughing, Freddy started after it. "If you have something to say, just say it. I'm not here to play games with you."

"Games… now there's an idea. Let's play a game, Freddy." The marionette hovered above the bear, its smile wide and dark. "This is a special game, Freddy, very special. Listen closely."

"I don't have time for this," Freddy spat.

"You're _not_ listening," the marionette sang.

Words were hot in the bear's voice box, but they did not come forth. In the stillness, there was a soft ringing. Freddy had heard the noise plenty of times before during the days of the diner.

"What do you hear?" the marionette asked with eyes wide with excitement.

Freddy looked out into the hallway. "It's just a phone…"

"Is it?"

"Yes," Freddy replied. "What does this have to do with—"

Upon returning his eyes back to the room, the marionette was gone. Confused, the bear searched the corners of the room only to find that he was now alone—alone with the sound of a ringing phone. Heated and tired, Freddy retreated from the room and made his way back to his power unit. It was a mistake entertaining the idea that someone had the answers he sought.

The ringing became louder.

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"_Uh, hello…? Hello, hello?_"

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Freddy's head lifted to hear the voice, his feet slowing to stand still.

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"_Hello and welcome to your new summer job!_"

Curious, Freddy started after the sound of the man's voice. His eyes skimmed the halls and empty rooms where the animatronics froze in their last pose. He continued.

"_… now, I want you to forget anything you may have heard about the old location, you know…_ _t__hat old restaurant was kind of left to rot for quite a while…_"

The voice became louder as Freddy entered the main hallway. As he came to cross the hall where the security room sat at the center of the building, the bear turned his head to where the man's voice resided. Before the monitors, reclining in the worn, black computer chair sat a young man, but this was not the same man from before. This was someone new… someone whose face was branded on Freddy's servers. With wide eyes of disbelief, Freddy felt a raging inferno of hatred swallow his processors until the world around him turned black and all he could hear was the man on the phone say:

"_… oh, and uh… welcome to the Fazbear family, Jeremy._"

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><p><em>Thanks for reading! I am sorry it will take so long for the next chapter, but it will be worth it in the end, right? Thanks again, everyone. Hope you enjoyed! And please leave a review and let me know what you think, or what I should stray from doing. As always, I'm having a great time writing this one. Have a good one! <em>


	3. Descent into Madness

_Hello everyone! Surprise! I'm on the road still, heading down to Florida now. My husband and I are pretty much touring the east coast. And New York, you nearly took my breath away the first time I saw you. Absolutely amazing. Sorry for making you guys wait so long. I've hated not being able to post anything. I'll see if I can't get the next chapter up sooner, but no promises. Still got quite a lot of traveling left. Hope you enjoy!_

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_Faces stand out don't they, Freddy? You've thought of them. You _saw_ them. Don't try to tell me you don't know._

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Freddy's eyes opened in the way one would blink away a nightmare. He was hesitant to look around, but found comfort when he saw the familiar, faded walls of the backroom. At first, they did not seem real as he still struggled with the events of the previous night. It was no dream—machines did not dream—but how did he come to be here? How could he not remember going to see the marionette or…

A surge of power flooded his servers.

_Jeremy_.

He needed to speak to the others. They deserved to know—they _needed_ to know. After finding his bearings to stand, the bear began searching for the others. The backroom was desolate with only him wandering its empty halls.

"Foxy?" Freddy warily called. "Chica?"

There was no response.

Cautiously, the bear glanced through the curtains only to find the banquet hall as quiet as the backroom. Was the pizzeria closed for the day? After weighing the risks of exposing himself, Freddy decided to enter out into the pizzeria in search for his lost companions. He walked slow as he admired the colors and structure of his new home. It differed greatly from the halls of his diner, and yet he found nostalgia in the gleam of streamers and floating balloons. If things had happened differently, he wondered if one day the diner would have looked as extravagant as the pizzeria.

"Hello."

Freddy paused at the sound of a child's voice. Quickly, he turned to see a small statue of a boy standing behind him. For a moment, they stared at one another as Freddy contemplated the extent of his sanity. In the stead of his silence, the statue of a boy that held a red, striped balloon stepped forward under the weight of the bear's large shadow.

So it seemed his circuits were not fried just yet.

"Hello there," Freddy answered as he knelt down to look at the curious creation. "It appears I have lost my friends. Do you know where they might be?"

The boy answered only with a laugh before bouncing on the tips of his toes to reach up and snatch the top hat that sat upon the bear's head. With it clutched ever so tightly in his little fist, the boy ran off through the hallway leaving Freddy stunned and speechless for but a moment.

"H-hey!" Freddy called as he gave chase to the statue. "Give that back!"

The boy's laughter rang through the halls, leading Freddy far across the stretch of the pizzeria. Room through room, he ran, no longer fearing to be seen. Though he took large strides and surely moved faster than the little boy, he could not catch up.

"Please," the bear begged. "That is very precious to me, give it back!"

At last, the boy entered a dark room that Freddy believed to be the end of their game of tag. The bear hesitated at the doorway, making certain that the statue could not slip out if he entered the room. Before finding the balloon boy, Freddy saw his top hat sitting in the center of the room. With a curse hot on his wires, he approached the hat and stooped to retrieve it. Behind him, the sound of metal hissing and scrapping brought Freddy to stand alert. Upon turning toward the noise, Freddy met a mangled corpse of metal hanging down from the rafters of the ceiling. Its head swayed closer, a pale face with painted lips smiled seductively down at him.

"Hello-o, handsome."

The machine folded and fell to the ground, twisting and changing its body as it stood before the bear. Her eyes were bright and lively, much like those of his companions. Freddy's eyes flickered down to her bare endoskeleton, watching as wires twisted and cogs turned. The vixen's hand, or what was once a hand, shot up and knocked Freddy's gaze to meet her own. "What's the matter, pops? Never seen a fox before?"

Freddy slid the hat atop his head before looking elsewhere to compose his thoughts. "No, I mean, yes. I have, it's just… well, that is—" Freddy knocked the words from his voice box, deciding to change the route of conversation. "I am looking for my friends. Do you know where they might be?"

"That depends on who you call a friend," the vixen said before bending herself to collect some of her missing pieces.

"The older models that were transported from the previous Fazbear establishment," Freddy told her. "I can't seem to find them."

The vixen stood and faced the bear as she attached another limb to her puzzle-pieced endoskeleton. "Did you think to check the stage?"

"I highly doubt I would find them there," Freddy scoffed at the idea.

The vixen's lips turned to a frown as she leapt up into the rafters and slithered her way toward the door. "Maybe you don't know your friends as well as you think."

Silently, Freddy watched her as he considered the words that she said. He walked after her as she led him into the hall and down toward the main stage. Upon nearing the threshold of the room, the bear slowed at the sound of voices.

"… he's not always like this."

"Irrelevant."

"He's been through quite a bit, mate. Waking up after so long did him no good either."

"This only further proves the need for action."

"Well, hold on a minute," Chica laughed nervously. "Why the rush? I mean, I know where y'all are comin' from. I get it, I do. But he's our friend."

"Will that excuse still be used when he causes the downfall of another Fazbear family restaurant? His circuits are fried. If he becomes rogue…"

"—if _who _becomes rogue?"

The animatronics near the main stage turned to the opening of the room where Freddy approached with haste. Though anger burned behind his vivid, blue eyes, the bear attempted to keep himself composed when he saw his friends look away from him in guilt.

The toy Freddy upon the stage was much smaller than his predecessor and much more childlike, but that did not lessen the intensity of his words. "It has come to our attention that you are much more unstable than we previously believed."

"Is that so?" Freddy shot back. "What evidence do you have?"

The childlike Freddy narrowed its eyes as its hands came to clasp behind his back. "You don't remember, do you?"

The wires that ran through the bear's body tensed as the feeling of dread resurfaced. The eyes of his companions, of the machines he did not know, were upon him. There, gleaming in their eyes was a spark of a truth that remained unknown to him. Lacing that truth there was uncertainty and fear. Freddy sorted through his processors, searching for memories that were not there. A moment's pause before the machine asked, "What is it you believe I have done?"

"The night guard," Chica started softly, exposing the truth slowly where others would tread without caution. "You… attacked him."

"What?"

"We stopped you," the toy Freddy said. "If it were not for Bonnie using the ventilation to intervene upon your attack, you might have killed him."

"It's true, mate," Foxy said. "It was like you were possessed. It took the lot of us to pull you back."

Realization for the opportunity he had missed turned the dread on Freddy's wires to cold and bitter anger. Silently, he watched the others stare at him. If he told them what he had learned, would they believe him at this point? Or would the Toys convince his friends he was merely placing blame?

"We're worried about you, Freddy." Chica admitted.

"Don't be."

"In the event that the security worker returns, as unlikely as that may be," the toy Freddy stated with an unyielding tone. "I will dismantle and deactivate you myself if you attempt to cause him harm again, do I make myself clear?"

Tensed silence shot between the two Fazbears before the original Freddy advanced the stage. With a single step, he mounted the stage and stood as a colossal beast against his toy replica. The other toys moved closer, but he paid them no attention. "You may look like me," Freddy lowly spoke. "You may sing the songs I used to sing, you may dance and claim to be me," the bear's large hand snatched the suit of his replacement in a tight fist, drawing him up to meet his icy gaze. "… but let's make one thing very clear; get in my way and I will rip the beams from your body and use them to beat your friends here until they're reduced to scrap metal."

Toy Freddy remained quiet though his glare spoke volumes.

"Do _I _make myself clear?" Freddy asked, a smirk pulling across his face before dropping the toy replica back onto the stage floor.

The toy bear brushed off his suit before looking up into the crazed eyes of his predecessor. "I believe we're done here."

"Good," Freddy growled before stepping down off the stage.

There were many things he wanted to tell his companions, but so long as they feared the newer models, his words would be made useless. He gave them no glance, though he felt the sad eyes of Chica and the cautious stare of Foxy follow him until he entered the hall.

The vixen waited for him in the rafters, just as he thought she might be.

"You're not as young as you think, sweetheart," she reminded him.

"So I've been told," he replied, refusing to stop walking, as it was his only way of releasing steam peacefully.

"Were you bluffing?" she asked as she watched him walk down the hall. "Or will I have some entertainment these next few nights?"

"I guess we'll find out," Freddy answered before leaving the mangled vixen to revel in her fantasies.

The odds were against him now. Even if he had the help from the vixen and the statue, he could not hope to survive a fight against five capable machines. He wished he could turn back, tell Foxy what he knew and convince Chica that he only fought for their family name, but the time for apologies had passed.

Now was the time for revenge.

And there was only one being that could help him.

Freddy's hand closed the lid of the music box and with eager eyes; he watched the wooden chest open.

"I need your help."

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><p><em>Thanks for reading! If you liked what you saw, let me know in a review! I love hearing from you guys. It makes my days seem a little bit brighter. I hope you're enjoying the journey we're on and I can't wait to get another chapter up. Thanks again, and as always, have a good one! <em>


	4. Dark Opportunities

_Still on the road. Looking like we might be delayed getting back home by a few days. Thank God for wifi. By the time this pops up, I'll have added a few more pictures to my profile that I drew for this fanfic (hopefully, this wifi is reaaaallly unreliable). Let me tell you, drawing on the road is no picnic. I hope you guys enjoy!_

**_Song played while writing: _**_"Welcome to the Machine" by Pink Floyd  
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Jeremy groaned as he sat down in the office chair. His fingers drummed against the empty, Freddy Fazbear head that management had provided him after he had submitted a complaint during his last shift. _It should help_, they told him. He snorted a breath. Keyword: _should_. They also told him about the flashlight and how it forces a system reset with most of the machines. Again,_ most_. If he did not have as many debts to pay, he would have told this place to kiss his ass. But he did. And he imagined the look on his parole officer's face if he found out he was fired again. He let off another groan. "Just until six," he told himself.

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However, if the animatronics could not protect Jeremy, he would never see the light of day again.

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"Do you think you can do that for me?" Freddy asked with a kind smile. "Can you get in the office and disable the cameras' flashlight?"

Balloon boy giggled, attempting once more to steal the Fazbear's top hat, but this time Freddy was prepared and held it down with a firm hand.

"Turn off the flashlights," Freddy laughed. "And I'll give you my hat for as long as you want. Can you do that?"

The boy contemplated for a while, pursing his lips in thought before widely grinning and giving a large nod. Freddy stood, placing a hand atop the statue's head and giving it a tap.

"Good boy."

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The others patrolled the halls, attempting to get in the security office to protect the night guard who foolishly returned. Unfortunately, after what transpired the last time Jeremy set foot into the pizzeria, he became wary of all the animatronics and was quick to turn them away, forcing them to restart at their charging terminals. Freddy waited in the prize corner, relaxing himself upon the striped armchair. Countless times, his toy replica passed the doorway, giving him a scrutinizing glance in which Freddy responded only with a smile.

Freddy's eyes turned toward the music box, still twinkling with the sound of music.

"Make one mistake," Freddy whispered to the remote-controlled music box. "And I'll take from you what you took from me all those years ago."

His eyes were trained to the music box, never failing to watch as it wound down, and then back up. It was only a matter of time now before the man slipped. The only thing in the building that could protect Jeremy from Freddy's wrath were the other animatronics, and he sat cowering in an office afraid to let them near him. The bittersweet irony brought a deep chuckling laugh to Freddy's voice box.

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"This is bloody pointless," Foxy snapped as he found himself, once again, in the backroom.

"You can't blame the kid," Chica replied as she closed the distance between them. "Poor thing must be scared to death of us."

"With right," Foxy commented. "Of all of the things to come after him, the old boy is definitely the most frightening, he is."

As Foxy began his walk back into the hallway, he was stopped by the sound of Chica's voice. "You don't really think he's gone rogue, do you?"

The pirate turned back, a frown fitting over his mouth at the sight of sadness held in the chick's eyes. Slowly, the fox returned to her side before placing his hand on the curve of her shoulder. "I don't know what to think, love. Of all the years I've known him, none of this makes a bit of sense, but no matter what happens," he curled his hand beneath her chin and lifted it to turn her eyes up to his, "as long as we're together, we'll be all right."

Chica gave a weak smile before the fox turned back toward the hallway.

"You comin', lass?"

"In a minute," she replied. "There's something I need to do first."

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Freddy's fingers tapped against the armrest, his eyes fast to the music box. Hours had passed with no progress. _It is only a matter of time_. He repeated in his head. _He will fuck up somewhere_. The wires drew thin and buzzed with annoyance and urgency. His eyes, livid and blue, glowed brightly in the dimness of the room. The composure he once had fell to his feet in pieces. It was only expected that in such a fragile state of mind, Freddy flinched when Chica entered the room in a quick flash of yellow.

"We need to talk," she told him, firmly.

"Can't it wait?" Freddy asked, carefully watching the twisting mechanisms in the music box.

Chica neared, blocking his sight of the object he stared at so intensely these last many hours. "No," she said. "It can't."

Freddy gave her an annoyed glance. If he told her to go, she would stay. He could make her leave. He could shout, and scream, and force her through the door—but by hurting her, he would only be hurting himself. He needed her as much as she needed him, and he hated the fact that she knew it.

"What's the matter with you," Chica started in a flurry of anger and misunderstanding. "Do you even know what you're doing? What you're making _us _do?"

"You don't understand."

"You're right," Chica laughed in desperation. "I don't understand. And you're not willing to even _look_ at me long enough to tell me why this is important to you."

"It just is," Freddy snapped.

"Why?" Chica demanded.

"It just _is_," he repeated, louder.

She shook her head, turning to look away. She did not have time to play games. Time was running short. "They're going to tear you apart, you know? They're going to shut you down for good, is that what you want?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Of course it does!" Chica cried. "How can you say that? Is this what Mr. and Mrs. F would have wanted? To see you hurt other people. To see you not care about anything anymore but yourself. Is this what Maggie would have wanted?"

Freddy's eyes flickered up to Chica. Though he did not move, a wave of anger flooded the room. His voice was cold as he said, "Don't bring her into this."

"But this is what it's about, isn't it? This is about Maggie. This is about how you couldn't save her—"

"—stop—"

"—you weren't fast, not good enough and she's _gone_—"

Freddy rose to his feet. "—I said stop—"

"—or what, Freddy? What will you do?" Chica wept. "Will you kill me like you're trying to kill Jeremy? Because, I think I'd rather die than watch you ruin what little we have left of a family."

They stood facing one another as opposing beliefs, vast extremes. As Chica was learning the depths of her sadness, Freddy discovered the heights of his hatred, but if there was one thing he could not find hatred for, it was her. Chica's hands lifted to grip her bowed head where all her misery buzzed in electric flashes. She wanted to fight him, to stop him from destroying the image she held of him, the image of a leader and hero, but she could hardly find the strength to stand let alone fight.

Slowly, Chica felt arms envelope her and she quieted herself.

"I'm sorry," Freddy whispered as he set his chin against the top of her head. "You must believe me when I tell you I'm doing this for the good of the family."

Chica rested her head upon Freddy's chest. She had nearly forgotten how strong his arms were and how safe she felt within them. "Please… tell me what's going on. Me, Bonnie, and Foxy. We all want to help you. I want this all to go away, but I just… I just need to know why."

Silence filled the prize corner as Freddy thought of the words to say. He wanted to tell her, but he feared that she might not believe him. He was not sure if he was strong enough to know that she and the others would not stand with him. He, too, wanted this all to go away. He wanted things to go back to the way they were, but how could they? How were things supposed to—

Just then, Freddy froze.

_Silence filled the prize corner._

As if licked by flames, Freddy tore himself away from Chica as he looked toward the music box, which had played no longer.

"Freddy?" Chica asked. "What's wrong?"

His eyes shot to the wooden chest that now lay open and empty against the far wall of the prize corner. Chica's hand lifted to touch Freddy's arm, but her fingers only skimmed his suit as he rushed out into the hall. She called after him, chasing him as he sprinted down the hall. She cried for him not to do this, for him to stay with her. What she did not know was that by the time he left the prize corner, Jeremy should all ready be dead.

Much to Freddy's surprise, not only was the marionette not in the security office, but Jeremy was gone as well. In his place, a short man shuffled papers while humming a tune. At the sight of Freddy, the man leapt and laughed.

"Oh, jeeze, Freddy," he put a hand over his heart. "You, uh… you nearly gave me a heart attack. Are you, uh, being good? You know, you shouldn't be out of the backroom," Freddy searched the office, moving aside planters, and checking beneath the desk all the while the security guard stood back and timidly watched him. "What are, uh… what are you looking for, Freddy?"

"Where is Jeremy?" Freddy demanded, his eyes still searching.

"Well, Freddy, it's a quarter past six," the man said as he squinted his eyes at the watch upon his wrist. "Jeremy had to go home, but, uh, don't worry—he'll be back. You'll see him tonight."

Freddy's hands curled into fists, an action that the small security guard had not noticed as he busied himself at straightening the desk that the previous guard left in disarray. In Freddy's ears, he heard the ringing of a phone as the world around him grew dark. He fell into the void, twisting and screaming and weightless. Upon a cry of rage, he choked. His circuits aflame, the inevitability of overheating was unable to break the focus he had upon his failed attempt to eradicate the man who took his happiness away from him. When he surfaced from his meltdown, he found himself standing before the wall of pictures, eye to eye with the Fazbears who abandoned him to decay in this personal hell. He felt weak and empty as he looked upon those he could not avenge.

"What a beautiful family to meet such a sad fate."

Freddy glanced at the marionette beside him.

"… it's a shame, isn't it?" the marionette sighed to his stoic companion. "Such a pretty little girl that Maggie was."

"… where were you?" Freddy asked ever so weakly. "You said you would help… you said…"

"I was right _here_," the marionette purred. "Waiting for you."

Freddy remained in tortured silence.

"I told you I would help, but the revenge you seek must come at your own capable hands, Freddy. How unsatisfying would it be if someone else unveiled the face of your murderer? No, no, I couldn't possible do that."

"Then what help are you?" Freddy asked. The extent of his anger for the day had exhausted his body that now stood slumped and leaning.

The marionette laughed and danced across the bear's shoulders. Its hands skimmed from one edge of Freddy's suit to another. "We're playing another game, Freddy. Listen closely to my words." The marionette wrapped about Freddy's front, entangling the Fazbear before resting its white face to dance before the bear's eyes. "We all wear masks to hide who we are. A smile to hide a frown. A familiar face to hide the stranger within."

"I don't understand," Freddy whispered, his mouth nearly touching the marionette's smile.

"We all wear masks to protect who we are." The marionette loosened its hold on the machine. "Choose your mask wisely."

As the words dripped into the stillness between them, a door down the hall beckoned attention with a creaking whisper. Curious, Freddy made way toward the noise while the marionette lingered behind, a broad grin spreading across its face. Through the curtains of looming shadows that shrouded the backrooms, Freddy moved carefully. The door that opened waited at the end of the hall for him. The darkness within was eager and waiting to enfold the machine and make him its own.

Freddy entered the room silently, searching through the dark with glowing eyes.

His hand found the wall, a switch beneath his thumb.

Light flickered through the shades, breathing life and illumination.

Freddy's eyes were fast to the glass case at the end of the room. Towards it, he walked, enthralled by the specimen behind the glass. A phantom memory, somehow restored and new, posed and smiled behind a reflective pane. As Freddy stared into his reflection, the cogs of his mind turning with processors aflame with thought, he saw the white, smiling face appear over his shoulder.

"You know what you need to do," the marionette whispered into his ear.

The machine's eyes narrowed, his strategies begun as he and the marionette looked up into the glass case at an empty, Freddy suit glittering with gold.

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Jeremy sat with a bowed head as a firm hand held the phone to his ear. He did not sleep before his shift, just as he had not slept the shift before that. His nerves were lit with fear as he found himself jumping at every shadow. It was a mistake to take this job.

"… look, I know what I saw, all right?" He snapped back over the phone. His eyes danced over the monitors—did he move? Was he always sitting there? "… I just… look, I get it… well that doesn't mean anything." He violently sat back in his chair, his free hand reaching up to rub the sleep from his eyes.

"Look, man," Jeremy started. "All I'm asking for is someone to check them out. Send some, some maintenance guys or something. Something's wrong, okay? … well, I doubt you'll be saying that when one of them rips off a kid's head. Let's see how well you do with some pissed off parents and their lawyers."

He sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry. I… please, I just… don't feel safe anymore. Can you just send someone? Anyone?"

Jeremy's shoulders drooped.

"Thank you. I just… it's just been a long week. When will they be here? Thursday night? But, I… I just…" Jeremy slumped again. "Okay, okay. It's fine. Thursday, then. Okay. Bye."

The phone dropped against its holder as Jeremy spit curses against the palms of his hands. He needed this money. He needed to stay out of jail, but all this _bullshit_ was too much. Jeremy focused himself on the monitors with the flashlight gripped tightly in his hands. He was thorough and precise, but his paranoia crippled his thought to search the room in which he cowered. Above him, a pale face hung with a mess of wires and limbs surrounding it.

A smile pulled across the vixen's face before she silently crawled through the rafters and disappeared into the darkness.

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><p><em>Thanks for reading! I'll get working on chapter 5 and hopefully, Wifi permitting, I can get it uploaded before we get back home. Have a great weekend everybody! Leave a review to tell me how lucky I am to find wifi in the middle of nowhere. Have a good one! <em>


	5. Corruption

_Still on the road. So tired. Want to sleep in my own bed. Oh well- here's chapter 5! It's a lot longer than the others which makes me feel better that I can't update every day like I once planned to (oh ho ho, how foolish am I). I hope everyone had a good weekend. Enjoy the new chapter, we're getting close to the end! What a wonderful journey this has been. Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing. The reviews are really what made me want to update everyday. Your kind words have meant a lot to me. Anyways, enough blabbering... Enjoy!:)  
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"Aye?" Foxy grinned with arms crossed about his chest.

The diner was quiet as Bonnie and Chica had shut down for the night and Freddy tended to the whims of his darling little one with nary a thought of anyone else. Foxy's golden eye found its mark on a young boy whose face was hidden by unkempt, red hair. The boy raced between the Caribbean cutouts that decorated the pirate's little cove while his guardian watched over him.

"Well, yeah," Max said as he raced around another palm tree. "I mean, one day I'll be a grown up, too, right?"

"Of course," Foxy agreed.

"And Maggie told me she doesn't want the diner."

"Is that so?" _Freddy would love to hear this._

"So, maybe when I'm bigger and have a lot of money, I can buy the diner," Max grinned, his freckled cheeks were swelled and bright. "Then, I'll make it bigger and get a real pirate ship for pirate cove. I'll live in it so I never have to leave the diner again. You can be a real captain and I can be your first mate!"

"A _real_ captain?" Foxy asked with a perched brow. "And what am I now, lad? A grumpy, old codfish?"

He leapt from his pose, snatching the boy with his less dangerous hand. The child laughed, twisting in his arms as Foxy carried him toward the edge of the stage. "I should make ye walk the plank for that comment, boy."

"No, no!" Max giggled. "I didn't mean it! I swear!"

Foxy shifted the boy in his arms, placing him down squarely before his buckled boots. A smile pulled across the fox's face as he said, "You're just saying that to save your hide."

"I mean it," Max stressed as he gripped the pirate's hook and spun it. "Cross my heart!"

The pirate gave him a firm look before ending his pursuit of judgment. His jagged teeth bore through a long smirk before Foxy returned to the previous conversation. "So, you truly want to run the diner?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Max asked. "I love it here."

Foxy's smile faded as he looked over the young boy who still had so much room to grow. Would the age of time fade those dreams he now clung to? Foxy did not like thinking of such dark thoughts, but years went by fast to one who did not age. "You may feel differently when you become a man."

"I'm a man now," Max puffed. "And I love the diner. Don't you worry, captain, I'll always be here."

Foxy warmly smiled before mussing up the boy's hair.

"As will I, lad."

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Foxy awoke to see the bare walls of the pizzeria's backroom.

A heaviness weighted his chest as he could still hear the laughter of the child he lost. Upon awakening in the pizzeria for the first time, the profound feelings of loss and abandonment became too heavy for him to bear and after much consideration, he decided to erase the memories that he once held so dear. A decision that no one knew he had made. Still, after all this time, it seemed every morning upon booting up he found another memory he had forgotten to erase. With each resurfacing memory, Foxy was left to decide once more whether he should harbor his grief and loneliness or say farewell to the freckled face of that little boy he loved ever so much in hopes he may at last have peace.

His eyes closed tightly as he refused to let his emotions pull him under.

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_Do you wish to delete this data?_

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"_I'll always be here_."

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"As will I, lad." Foxy felt the words form in his voice box and he acted too slowly to stunt them. His head drooped, his decision made.

Across the way, a plump chick made her awakening stretch. She slept soundly, as she did most nights, and a smile lit her face. "Good morning, Foxy. I think you're the only one who wakes up as early as I do."

Routine.

"Morning, lass." He replied weakly, no longer finding the strength to wear his mask.

Before Chica was able to question his state of being, the backroom door opened and Bonnie entered, surprising both the newly wakened machines. Behind him, came Freddy. The bear was quick to look about, making certain that no one else filled their small room.

"What's going on?" Chica asked as she watched Freddy rush to the front door to lock it shut.

"There's something I need to tell you," Freddy replied as he turned back to all his companions. "All of you."

"Is everything all right?" Chica pressed, a tone of worry lacing her words.

"No, everything is not all right. I have wanted to tell you for a while, but I feared your response." Freddy straightened his suit, turning his eyes over the faces of his three valued companions, his beloved family. "There is a reason behind my outbursts, behind my aggression. The night at the diner," Freddy hesitated before forcing the words from his throat, "the night Maggie was taken. Two men attacked her outside. I believe these two men to be the ones who opened the backdoor and took her. They may also be the ones who took the other children—who took Max." Freddy's eyes lingered upon the pirate who was stiff with silence. "One, I do not know, but the other we are all familiar with."

"… you're not saying," Chica started in disbelief.

"Jeremy." Freddy answered. "He was the man outside the diner. He took Maggie."

There was a tensed silence between them all as words could not be found. Trepidation tensed Freddy's shoulders as he waited for a response that he did not believe to come.

"Why are you telling us this, Freddy?" Chica finally asked, although hesitant to do so.

Freddy remained quiet, his eyes upon the floor as he compiled his thoughts. For years, he deluded himself to believe that there was hope. He thought he would die before he ever gave up on searching, on believing that there was a chance to bring back the Fazbears, to save the girl he fell in love with all those years ago, but it was time for him to let the phantoms of his past rest in peace. "Maggie… is gone," Freddy finally said. "All the children… are gone. We cannot bring them back to life. What we can do is give their families justice. We can judge the sins of vile men and give to them what they deserve."

While the others remained silent, Foxy stepped forward.

"I'm with you."

Freddy's chest filled with a new sense of hope and he gave the pirate a confirming nod. The bear's blue eyes flickered over to Chica and Bonnie who were no t so easily moved. Carefully, he approached them. "If not for Jeremy, we would still be in the diner. We would be the stars of our show and not the skeletons they hide in their closets. If not for Jeremy, Bonnie, you would not be afraid to show yourself. He is the reason you sit in the darkness. _He_ is the reason they maimed you. If not for the children, do this for yourself."

Bonnie's head bowed in thought.

"I am not asking any of you to do something you are not comfortable doing," Freddy told them. "All I ask is you look the other way while I do what I must do. By the end of this week, Jeremy will answer for his sins. Make no mistake about that."

Silently, Bonnie crossed the room to stand with Foxy and Freddy who accepted him with a thoughtful glance, which now only left…

The chick hesitated, a look of sadness turning her once bright smile into a frown.

"Chica," Freddy tried. "You don't need to take any part in this. I know how you feel, but I need to do this." He approached her. His hand cupped her cheek. "Please, believe me. You will not see anything. I'll make sure of it."

Chica lifted her head, her pale, pink eyes glimmering with regret as she said, "If this is what it takes to make you happy."

"Thank you," Freddy whispered before leaning down to place his mouth on her brow as if to leave a kiss.

Behind him, Foxy approached. "When do we attack?"

Freddy turned, eyes lit with anticipation.

"Immediately."

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While the others began talking of their plan of action, Freddy slipped from the room to relish his success in a moment of peace. He faced the room and watched as his companions swapped ideas. For the first time in a long time, he felt whole. His family no longer stood broken, but united. Behind the bear that stood in the solace of silence, a long, wiry tail descended from the rafters with a pale face following suit.

"You have such a way with words." The vixen sighed in admiration. "You'd give any girl weak knees."

Freddy looked up at her, no longer fearing her mangled, spiderlike body. "You have something to say? What is it?"

The vixen dropped to the floor and rose to stand alongside her mechanical brother. Her eyes lifted to his, matching his strong gaze. "It's a shame you're not more eloquent with me. The things I would say just to hear those strong words of yours. There's no secret I could hide from you."

"Please," Freddy gently urged.

The vixen rolled her head to a side as she circled the bear. Her eyes gleaming just like the teeth she hid behind painted lips. "A little birdie tells me you're planning to attack our security guard."

"Have you been spying on me?" Freddy asked, cocking his head to give her a sharp look.

"I spy on everyone," the vixen answered. "Don't feel special."

She stopped before Freddy, lifting her foremost limbs to encircle his neck as she laid her endoskeleton flush against his suit. "I used to be so terribly bored. Every night was the same. And then," a smirk curled over her lips, "_you_ showed up. This last week has been so… exhilarating. I don't ever want this madness to end."

"What's your point?" Freddy softly asked against her lips.

Vixen's eyes shifted between the blue eyes of the colossal bear before she purred. "I believe I may have information that might pique your interest. It looks like our little Jeremy is terrified of you—"

"He has reason," Freddy growled.

"—yes, well. Now, it looks like he's afraid of us all. He talked to someone. Someone that was sending maintenance workers down to repair us tomorrow night. After working on us, we'll be shut down for a good few hours while our servers update."

"And…" Freddy pressed in a whisper.

"_And_… you'll never get to Jeremy as long as Little Blue-Eyes is around. You want blood; you'll need to take out the Toys."

Freddy reached up and unlatched her arms from his neck, instead, holding her hands as he said. "Are you not a Toy as well? Why did you not take this information to the others?"

"Look, big boy," Vixen sighed as she pulled away from Freddy's arms, swaying her hips as she walked away. "Do with this information what you will. I just thought you'd be interested to know."

Freddy watched as the vixen leapt into the rafters, but before she could slither away, he called, "Thank you, Foxy."

The vixen looked back, her eyes shining bright in the darkness as a grin curved her lips.

"Call me Mangle."

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It was still early in the morning and Jeremy's shift was not over for a few more hours. While Freddy thought over the Mangle's words, the others began their attack. They blended in with the Toys, pretending as though they still shared the sentiment for Jeremy's survival, but if given the chance, they knew what to do. Freddy sat himself upon the striped armchair, deep in thought.

If he could somehow tamper with the Toys during their shutdown, perhaps he could level the playing field. Worst case scenario, someone would be suspicious of their behavior and call for maintenance again, but if he succeeded without drawing any suspicion, the malfunctioning Toys might be unable to prevent Freddy and the others from getting into the security office—perhaps they might even help.

Nevertheless, how was Freddy to tamper with them when he, too, was shut down for maintenance?

He thought.

Freddy's eyes flickered up to the wooden chest.

"Tonight, a maintenance crew will come to shut us down for a few hours. The moment they leave, I need you to force-restart my systems. I am well aware of the risk this poses. Spare me your sympathy. I'm prepared to die if need be."

The lid of the chest opened and a giggling voice flooded from the depths.

"… to die before knowing the truth… what a sad fate."

"I already know the truth," Freddy responded. "Will you do me this favor?"

The marionette hesitated before sighing its words. "Anything for a Fazbear."

Freddy nodded and rose from the chair.

"Tonight then."

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It was nearly six in the morning when Freddy returned to the backroom. The others waited for him. The look of annoyance on each of their faces told him well enough that Jeremy was much more capable of protecting himself than Freddy first believed. If all the animatronics, including the marionette, were to turn upon the night guard, it was certain that surviving the night would not be so easy. Freddy told the others of what Mangle had told him and subsequently informed them of his decision to force start his systems. The worry-laden eyes of his companions watched him as he spoke, but no voice was conjured to object his choice.

When all was said and done, the animatronics prepared themselves for their daily shutdown in hopes of finding rest before undergoing maintenance. Foxy took his place beside Freddy as Bonnie decided to take a place beside Chica. The chick smiled warmly at him as she surely missed having the rabbit by her side. Their fingers entwined, a weave of lilac and yellow. The light of their eyes faded and deep into sleep they fell.

Freddy remained awake for some time. He looked over the faces of his companions, fondly. If he did not survive the forced restart, this would be the last time he would see his family. He soaked this scene into his processors, remembering every detail. If he were meant to die, this would be his last memory. A family, reunited.

His eyes closed, and into sleep, he fell.

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The sound of a drill woke him.

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Light exploded to Freddy's eyes as he felt his chest shudder and pry open. A man dressed in dusty overalls knelt before him, his gloved hands reached into the inner workings of his mechanisms as he searched for his main power switch. His body was not responding and all that the bear was left to do was sit and watch the man shut him down. His eyes shifted across the room. The others were powered down, other men removing their servers for inspection. Freddy finished his search when he saw a clock hanging from the wall.

7:32 a.m.

They were early.

Very early.

Freddy was not given much time after that before the light of his eyes shut down and his mind fell into the darkness of his processors. Still, residing only in his metal prison, he knew fear. He clutched onto the memory of his family, the memory of Maggie, as time hidden away from the light of the world progressed faster than when he was awake. What he thought was seconds could be hours. Did the marionette know the workers arrived early? Would he be forced to restart, or would he awake at the same time as the others? He steeled himself, preparing for the worst. If he were to be restarted manually by the marionette, the power surge that interrupted the update could be enough to fry his circuits completely. He held onto the thought of Maggie Fazbear's face. With his focus upon her, he may have the strength to survive.

Suddenly, there was pain.

Light and electricity flooded his wires, coursing and strong as they tore him away from the happy memories and forced him into the pulses of life that overwhelmed and heated his central core. His screams were lost in the surge, drowned by the hissing of white noise and static charge. He gripped tightly onto his memories, begging to survive, fearful to die. Warning flashes. Overheating. His old servers were not fit to endure the amount of power that now shot through him. He would not survive. As if nerves set aflame, he suffered in unimaginable agony, as all he could do was wait to surface from the darkness or wait to die. His light was fading. A flame losing its breath. Death, imminent.

Freddy succumbed to the silence of darkness.

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… _brrrrz_…

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Blue light beamed through the shadows and life propelled Freddy off his charging unit and onto the dusty floor of the backroom. He seized as smoke poured from his mouth and nostrils. His eyes lifted as he faced the undeniable truth.

He survived.

Trembling and weak, Freddy snarled as he forced his body to lift from the floor as he bore the weight of life all the while ignoring the sirens in his ears warning him of the impending overheat, but nothing would stop him from completing his mission. He had so little time before the pizzeria opened for the day. He stumbled and fell before reaching the door, forcing himself to stand once more. His large claws gripped onto the wood of the door nearly removing it from its hinges as he used its frame to support his weight. The marionette was nowhere in sight, but that hardly concerned the Fazbear now. He forced his eyes to linger on the hallway even when his vision blurred and cut out. He did not know how long he had to tamper with the Toys and he was unwilling to find out. The sooner he finished, the sooner he could leave. For a moment, he hesitated before crossing the crossway of the security office. His eyes searched the office only to find the short security guard was not there.

An opportunity he would not waste.

Freddy entered the main room where the main stage stood against the far wall. His sight lifted to the Toys whose life resided only within. Hastily, he made his way up the stage starting with the foremost animatronics who were Bonnie and Chica. Carefully, he pulled apart their suits from the metallic skeleton where their internal servers hid. He slipped the skin of his hand off, revealing a skeletal hand whose fingers were jagged and sharp. With precision, he pried back metal and peeled wires. He unscrewed bolts, feeding wires into alternative ports. He was uncertain of the outcome of his efforts, but knew in some meager way they would help. After sealing the Toy Bonnie back into its suit, he repeated the process on the Toy Chica. After struggling with a few of the wires, he had completed his work and moved on to his largest threat, Toy Freddy.

The bear knelt before his mirror, undoing the suit and pulling back the skin that resembled his own. Just before Freddy could access the internal servers his body flew from the stage and against the tile, he tumbled. His body twisted repeatedly before falling still in the middle of the banquet hall. Static filled his eyes before he regained sight. His eyes lifted slowly, watching as Toy Freddy jumped off the stage and advanced him.

"No longer will I stand by and watch you damn us all," the Toy snarled.

Before Freddy could lift himself, the toy swung by his leg and violently kicked his predecessor. Freddy tumbled again, his body sustaining more damage than it could handle. The Toy threw down a cruel hand and grabbed a hold of Freddy's suit. With him lifted off the ground, Toy Freddy stabbed his hand into his elder's chest. His claws gripped and broke beams, tearing wires and further damaging the bear's central core before slamming him down into the tile.

"After I finish with you, I'll eradicate this company of all the other imperfect designs. There is no place for you in this world anymore."

Toy Freddy launched down a hateful fist that collided only with the palm of his elder. From the ground Freddy lifted, forcing a long and dark shadow over his advanced counterpart. His livid eyes shone bright as they rose and glared down the Toy. With a voice dripping with venom, Freddy growled, "Leave my family _alone_."

Together, they clashed. Their fight equally matched. While Freddy stood as a titanic embodiment of sheer power, the Toy was small and quick. Fortunately for the Toy, it was advanced and new, allowing quick strategy and analysis of weak points. However, the Toy underestimated the power that flooded his predecessor's body in light of his unadulterated rage. With an enraged roar, Freddy tackled his opponent and used his mass to weigh down the Toy. With vicious claws, he tore open the Toy's suit and plunged his hand into the internal servers. While the Toy thrashed beneath him, struggling to free himself, Freddy corrupted the processors and forced a shutdown.

The toy's limbs that once clawed and gripped at the bear's arms now fell lifeless to the ground and the light from its eyes darkened. Freddy sat back and looked down at the comatose machine he successfully conquered. Weakly, he stood, lifting up the Toy and carrying it back to the stage. He placed him where he once stood, closing the opened suit, and posing him as he had been before his arrival. Freddy gave him one final glance before heading off the stage and limping back toward the backroom.

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That night, Freddy forbid the others from leaving the backroom. _For your safety_, he told them, as he was still unaware of what the malfunctioning Toys would do. Still, he watched through the curtains as the Toys mindlessly wandered the halls. When they finally caught sight of Jeremy, they moved like predators stalking their prey.

The tampering had worked.

With the help of Mangle who routinely patrolled the rafters, Freddy slipped into the management office and stole the golden suit from its case.

"Hide this," he told her as he lifted the suit above his head. "Make it disappear and tell no one of its location. When I need it again, bring it to me."

As Mangle slithered away with the golden suit in hand, Freddy made way to the prize corner. He fell into the armchair, collapsing under his own weight. His eyes closed and shoulders drooped as he was one-step closer from realizing his goal. His head rolled to a side, his eyes following, as he opened the front of his suit and looked at the damaged beams and wires. He had waited too long to fix them. What once was repairable damage now became irreversible. Scorch marks turned the once metallic shine to black. Slowly, he closed the suit again, hiding the extent of damage from any curious eye. All, except one.

"I'm afraid you won't be with us for much longer," the marionette spoke solemnly as a frown fitted across its painted face. "They will replace you. Someone new to wear your skin."

"I know," Freddy weakly answered, his voice box stuttering. His glowing, blue eyes flickered up to the marionette as he forced himself to speak. "But won't it be worth it?"

A broad grin beamed from the marionette's face as it said proudly, "To die with justice is to die gloriously."

With a feeble nod, Freddy agreed.

Soon, he would take the life of a murderer.

And then, only then, would he take his final bow.

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><p><em>Thanks for reading Ch.5! You guys are the best. Share this story with your family, share it with your friends, leave reviews and pray the wifi signal stays strong! As for me, I need a nap. Have a good one, everybody! I'll see you in the next chapter! <em>


	6. The Jury and Executioner

_At last, I am home. And just before the holidays! I hope you all are having a good week. The clock is ticking as we're beginning our final countdown to the end of this marvelous journey. In the event that any of you lovelies draw any wonderful pictures that relate to this story, please let me know. I would very much love to put them up alongside my own work for this story. Thank you all again, and enjoy!_

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Chica was fast at the curtains as she peered out into the bright world beyond her realm of ruin and dust. Her pale eyes flickered over the children that danced around the Toys with wide smiles and carelessness all the while apprehension buzzed through the chick's wires. She stood ready—prepared to slice through the curtains that became her prison bars and prevent what she fear may happen now that the Toys were corrupted. They did not attempt to harm the children though the staff were a different story. For a couple minutes they would stand, staring blankly at the faces they should know so well. Still, Chica did not trust them. Though she was the only one who seemed bothered by the chance that Freddy's tampering may harm more than it helped, she refused to leave the curtains until the pizzeria closed for the evening.

Behind her, Freddy lay in a deep slumber. The labors he subjected himself to the previous night took a great toll on his body. He reserved as much power as he could knowing well he would require it when night fell. Not even in the depths of his metal shell did he exert power. He lay in darkness. A sleeping giant biding time before the dawn of war.

When he finally did wake at the close of the pizzeria, he was startled to find he did not sit alone. Beside him, Bonnie sat with a dark, ragged towel between oiled hands. The bear's eyes fell down to his suit that lay ruffled and opened. A dark secret he hid laid open for prying eyes. Freddy watched Bonnie in silence for a while before the rabbit realized his leader had awoken.

"… I replaced what wires of yours I could," Bonnie softly said in fear of alerting others to Freddy's fragile state.

"Where did you find new wires?" Freddy asked.

Bonnie answered only by turning toward his elder and exposing his opened chest cavity. Freddy's sight fell to the blackened wires that coursed through the rabbit's body that once infected his own. A solemn frown fell on his face, but he did not speak.

"It's not good," Bonnie told him. "Your body won't be able to take much more, but… you already knew that, didn't you?"

Freddy was silent.

"… if it gets worse," Bonnie hesitated. "… _when_ it gets worse. I want you to take out my endoskeleton and replace it with your own."

Stunned, Freddy wavered before finding the words to say. "If I were to do that—"

"I know," Bonnie cut him short. His words fell heavy and quick. A decision that the rabbit had made long before Freddy surfaced from his sleep. "It won't be easy to switch our processors, but I can teach the others to do it. I can save you."

Freddy's body curled forward as he hunched closer to his companion who still feared to show his maimed face. "Bonnie, I cannot ask you to do that."

A laugh, out of place and dry with sorrow, shook from Bonnie's voice box before he turned his piercing, red gaze to meet Freddy's. "You didn't ask me to. You'd sooner fight until you lay in pieces than ask for help." Bonnie turned away, scrubbing still at his oiled hands. "You don't get it, Freddy. You don't have a choice anymore. Besides, the family needs you more than they need me."

A weight of sadness loaded Freddy's chest as he saw Bonnie's shoulders slump. His hand reached forward, breaking the veil of loneliness that shrouded his companion who hid in shadows for far too long. "No, Bonnie," Freddy disagreed. "You are wrong."

The two shared a burdened glance.

Without a word, Bonnie lifted to his feet and started away. Before he could take his leave, Freddy's hand caught his arm, halting him. The rabbit turned back, finding Freddy weakly standing. What once was a formidable machine now stood hunched and trembling. A sad fate.

"Whatever happens," Freddy started. "Do not tell the others of what you know. Promise me, Bonnie. They do not need to know."

Bonnie stood still for but a moment. His head gave a nod and silently he sauntered back into the darkness he called home as Freddy was left alone. Under his current condition, Freddy could not waste the power in pursuing Jeremy at night. The fate of the night guard would be left for the others to decide. He returned to his terminal and watched as at the new hour of the night, Bonnie and Chica fled to the halls in pursuit of justice. The Toys joined the hunt, moving on their own accord. In the backroom where Freddy rested, Foxy came to life.

There was a different air about him. Ever since Freddy revealed the truth of their circumstances with the night guard, the mechanical fox seemed reserved and furious. He spoke not a word as he dragged his hook upon the metal of the door frame. A spray of sparks hissed between the metal, which now lit the gold of his eye. He was swift, sprinting onward where others crept in shadow. Determination flooded the fox's servers. So long as Foxy clung to his hate, and the faded memories of a red-haired boy, Jeremy would not survive for much longer.

It was surprising then when the three original Fazbears returned to the backroom before the clock struck six. The air about the pirate's shoulders was electric with mechanical fury as the others were nearly relieved that Jeremy was able to fight off their advances. Before the day-shift rolled into the pizzeria, Freddy called for all the animatronics to gather in the backroom as he had much he needed to tell them. Together, they swarmed. Chica, Bonnie, Foxy, Balloon Boy, and Mangle. Though Freddy requested the Marionette to join them, the pale-faced puppet politely declined.

It was a plan he needed to devise, an order of events that would trap the murderer and force him to face justice. It was a fail-safe, a last resort. As Freddy gave out the orders, requesting that those uncomfortable taking a place in his scheme to let him know in advance so he may alter what he may, Chica stepped forward with words she harbored for so long.

"I don't think we should kill him."

Thick silence filled the backroom and before Freddy could respond, Foxy came to life.

"What the fuck do you mean we shouldn't kill him?" He broke through the group, advancing the yellow chick. Before he met his mark, Bonnie stepped in his way with red eyes gleaming through the darkness of his hollowed head. Foxy stopped, a sneer curling his lips and exposing the rows of jagged teeth hidden beneath. "What have you two been trying to do these last couple nights? Protect him? You piece of _shite_ cowards!"

"Foxy," Freddy warned.

"Don't you fucking '_Foxy'_ me!" The pirate snapped. "I thought it was agreed. I thought we made it bloody clear. The fucker dies. Wasn't that what we _agreed_?"

"I want him to answer for his crimes," Chica rounded Bonnie, facing off with the seething fox. "But his life is not ours to take."

"Like hell it is!"

"_Foxy_," Freddy warned again, standing tall from his charging port. "I do not wish to fight over this. The fate of the guard shall be left to a vote. Those in favor of taking his life?"

Quickly, the two foxes called their 'I's.

"And those opposed?"

Chica and Bonnie called their 'I's. In the stillness, Balloon Boy approached Freddy. The bear turned his eyes down to the small statue that held a pouted frown. Reaching up, the little boy took up the bear's hand. A vote of peace.

"It comes down to you, mate," Foxy growled. "What's your say?"

Freddy lifted his eyes, matching the gazes of the machines that looked onto him for an answer he knew not how to give. His words brewed just as his thoughts did. With the boy's hand still in his grasp, he spoke loud for all to hear.

"For too long, I have allowed anger and hatred to control my life. I nearly destroyed our family, nearly brought destruction to us all." Freddy's eyes closed as he finished, "I am old and very tired."

"What sort of answer is that?" Foxy demanded.

"That's a 'nay'," Bonnie responded sharply.

"If it can be helped," Freddy attempted to resolve confusion, "I will not take the boy's life. We can inform the local police and turn him over for them to decide. We are not machines that kill. Our mission is to protect the children, as it was and forever shall be."

Dissatisfied with the response, Foxy cursed and swiped his hook at one of the workbenches sending binders of paperwork and garbage to crash onto the backroom floor. In a swift dash of red, the pirate stormed from the room leaving behind a lingering charge of anger. With a frown, Chica started toward the door, eager to calm her friend, but found herself cut off by a metallic blur.

"Leave this to me, sweetheart," Mangle purred. "Some machines need a special touch."

Freddy caught the curl of a smirk on the white fox's lips and the sparkle of a telling glance before she slithered after her elder brother. With the foxes leave, and the Balloon Boy finding solace in burying his face into Freddy's leg, Bonnie approached the weary king bearing a simple question.

"Will you be ready to face him? … to face Jeremy?"

Freddy looked down to Balloon Boy who glanced up with wide and innocent eyes. There was a time that Maggie stood at his height, gripping so tightly at his leg as he swore to fight that shadows of her nightmares.

"I'll have to be."

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As the others continued to talk about the necessary plans for the following day, Freddy made his way down to the room of service and repairs. If Bonnie could replace wires, perhaps he could mend himself even more. He closed the door behind him, locking it to make certain no one would know what it was he did. He searched high and low. With large paws, he swiped at the workbench and turned on a mounted lamp. A careful glance, a moment of silence. Freddy pried open his suit, looking at the damaged beams and servers. He removed what he could and looked for spare parts. He searched and searched with no luck.

"It's no use, you know."

Freddy stopped his search. His eyes closed.

"… how did you get in here?"

When the bear turned to face the intruder, the hovering face was already so close. The smile, however, was nowhere to be found.

"There was nothing you could do," the marionette spoke gravely.

The words caught in Freddy's throat.

As the spectral doll floated before the darkness, Freddy felt himself slipping. A smile to hide a frown. A mask we all wear. The face of a child he could not protect still burned so brightly in his memories. A face that he would never see again. There were what-if's and could have's and should have's—but to think of such only brought pain. Freddy bowed his head.

The marionette continued, "… just as there was nothing I could do."

Freddy lifted his head to see the marionette crying streams of purple tears; a soft, weeping grace tainted its eerie voice.

"… for years I screamed words that no ears could hear. If only I had acted sooner… perhaps then… perhaps."

"What are you talking about?" Freddy asked.

The marionette floated even closer. Its willowy appendages wrapped themselves about the machine as it whispered so softly, "You understand, don't you, Freddy? You and I, we're one in the same, aren't we?"

Uncertain, the bear retreated from the marionette's dark embrace. Cautiously, he stood back with puzzled eyes, as the riddles the puppet spoke did nothing but confuse him more. "I don't understand. What are you trying to tell me?"

The marionette sighed as it drifted away back into the darkness from whence it came. "Perhaps you never will. Though, I do hope one day you might… despite the pain it may cause you."

"Wait," Freddy called after it. "I have a question for you."

The marionette hovered, waiting.

"The boy named Jeremy. Do you believe I should take his life?"

Turning toward the Fazbear, the marionette spoke simply. "If you find yourself asking a puppet to weigh the value of life and death, you merely search for validation that you chose your decision correctly."

"… and have I?"

A smile painted the pale face before the marionette purred. "We shall see."

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><p><em>Thanks for reading! Leave me a review and let me know what you think, tell me who your favorite is, tell me who you hate- I love hearing from you guys. In the event that I don't get to "see" you before the holidays, everyone have a good one and if you're driving- be safe! Happy holidays, everybody! <em>


	7. Judgment

_Hello there, and welcome to chapter 7! I've decided that there will be ONE more chapter after this. I would make it all one, but I don't want it to be forever long. I hope you understand. That being said, let's get right to it! Hope you enjoy!_

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The walk back toward the backroom where all his companions gathered was silent and measured. His hands lifted to smooth the folds of his suit. Forcing a nonchalant façade, the fearful machine reentered the backroom to find his friends waiting in heavy silence. The foxes had rejoined the group, though finding solace away from the gathered herd. Foxy gave him no glance, but instead, turned his golden eye down to the hook that hung between the joints of his knees. There was sadness in the air, a loss of hope. Freddy approached slowly in fear he may detonate the tension permeating the stale atmosphere. The bear's eyes fell across his companion's faces, searching for a telling sign of truth.

At last, he asked ever so softly. "What happened?"

"Mangle overheard the security guard," Chica answered. "He's leaving a recording for Jeremy in the event he comes in tonight."

"… though he's not meant to," Bonnie added.

Freddy's brow fell as he turned toward the white fox that stood beside her seated brother. "And this recording? What did he say?"

It took a moment for Mangle to stir from her thoughts. Her eyes were slow to meet Freddy's wary gaze. Though her face showed no emotion, her metallic body betrayed her by coiling tight. "The pizzeria is closing down, Freddy. We're losing our home."

"What?"

"He didn't say why," Mangle continued with a heated laugh. "He mentioned the suit… he knows something is wrong with the Toys. You never should have tampered with them."

Freddy's face grew cold though his servers warmed. The others did not know the extent of damage caused by tampering with the Toys. The life he would soon lose from corrupting their drives and turning them hostile. To hear his efforts shamed so lightly made him bitter.

"… we should have killed him when we had the chance," Foxy snarled lowly as he became mesmerized by the gleam of his hook.

Freddy walked closer, stepping into the center of the ring in which his friends stood. "He may still return. We have a chance."

"Actually," Mangle started in a purr. "We have two. The guard mentioned something about a birthday party tomorrow morning. Jeremy will be brought in to keep an eye on the animatronics."

"Are you certain?" Freddy pressed.

"Yes," Mangle answered softly as she approached the bear. "_That_ will be your last chance."

Freddy's eyes narrowed as he looked down upon the white fox. Lowly, he spoke, "Then let's make it worth it."

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Jeremy returned that night.

His finger drummed over the voicemail button, starting the recording that the day shift had left for him. The color slowly drained from his face as the voice recording explained he should not have come. He turned his eyes upwards and down the hall only to see darkness. Trembling, the man fumbled through the stack of papers and folders left scattered across the desk, the only sound in the otherwise noiseless building. A fearful curse trembled on his tongue. At last, he found that for which he searched. A simple, plastic flashlight he cherished as if it were the greatest treasure on earth. His thumb flicked the button, breathing a beam of illumination to shimmer down the long and empty corridor before his desk that waited for him like an ominous and gaping portal to hell. An unsteady breath shook his chest as with wide eyes he searched the dimness. His ears rang with the sound of scrapping metal. The vents? His hands flew to the monitors, scrolling through camera feeds.

Nothing.

Jeremy's eyes strained through the faded grain of the screens, awaiting a gleam of metal—a glitter of movement. It had been days since he last slept. In his bed he lay each morning, only to fear the shadows that hid beneath his bed and in the depths of his closet. No matter how far he was from Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, he could still hear the soft chimes of a music box winding down to die in silence. He awoke, screaming and clutching at his blankets, dripping with sweat. He never should have come back.

Jeremy lowered the monitor screen only to see Freddy standing before his desk.

Sweeping dread filled Jeremy, seeping into every pore and stunting the scream that curdled in the depths of his throat. The flashlight fell from his hands, the empty Fazbear head joining its descent to the dirty tile beneath his feet. The man flung after them, scrambling to retrieve the only items that might protect him against these malicious machines. His hands that shook so wildly in fear could not stable the flashlight he now flashed before him, but the light did not touch Freddy for Freddy was never there.

With his back against the wall, cowered and shivering against the tile, Jeremy began to cry. He sat there only for a moment, staring into the void of black that mocked him. A flashing button drew him from his hallucinations. Jeremy crawled back into his seat, turning up the monitor of the prize corner. His eyes kept on the painted chest of the puppet as he wound the music box. Fearing he may spend too much time with his eyes elsewhere, Jeremy lowered the monitor and shined the light down the hall.

Nothing.

His eyes flickered toward the clock.

Midnight.

"Six more hours," Jeremy chanted, weakly. "Six more hours."

Even with his chant of strength, Jeremy could not keep his hands from quivering.

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In the dead of night, the machines stalked with only one purpose.

As the others attempted to break into the security office, Freddy started preparing his fail-safe. With the others preoccupying Jeremy, it was easy for the Fazbear to accomplish all that he needed. In the dark of the backroom, he faced Bonnie. Perhaps it was best that the rabbit was now unable to portray emotion, thought Freddy who clawed from his skin like a maggot writhing through dead meat. He stood as only metal now, unrecognizable—a stranger. A machine.

Bonnie folded his leader's skin into a compact size.

"Hide it well," the skeletal mess of black metal said.

"I will," Bonnie swore.

Though the decaying skeleton traversing through the halls of the backroom unnerved the rabbit, however, the fact that it still shared the same kind eyes of the colossal bear made Bonnie feel safe. Safe enough for him to approach the towering machine. Bonnie kept his head lowered, fearing to show how deep the hole in his face ran.

"Please come back," Bonnie whispered. "Don't let this be the last time I see you."

Freddy's skeleton stood still a moment, its eyes turning elsewhere. "I cannot promise you that, Bonnie."

Bonnie watched as the machine turned and started down the hallway into the void of darkness. The shadows swallowed him, entangling the melted wires and scorched beams that once glistened like starlight. Words bubbled in Bonnie's throat though he felt afraid to say their worth. Like vomit, they rose and overcame his will, spewing out in a frightened stutter.

"Goodbye… Freddy."

They parted ways, Freddy pursuing the final steps of his plan while the rabbit sought out a place to hide his leader's skin in hopes he may soon don it again.

The trap was nearly set.

And the prey was unsuspecting.

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As the beams of daylight broke into the building of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, Jeremy closed his eyes and took a deep breath of hope. The dayshift guard arrived on time, as he had every morning. Catch some sleep, he said. Come back at noon for the birthday party. Jeremy voiced his concerns as he did most mornings, but the guard merely smiled and told him his mind was merely playing tricks on him. He requested leaving early and taking the pay cut, but the guard told him the checks arrived as they did every Friday and he would still have to wait to retrieve it. Might as well make a couple extra bucks, the guard laughed in the face of Jeremy's fear.

Jeremy walked home. Though he felt the warmth of the sun's first rays hitting his back, he could not deny the coldness that gripped his heart. Before long, he found himself standing in the threshold of his apartment. It was barren, just as it had been since he first got it.

The man sat down at his quaint kitchen table finding sustenance only in the beer that sat cool in his fridge. He took a sip and then another. One more shift, he told himself. Not even a full one at that. Just a few hours until the parents grew tired of their filthy children screaming and crying over who got to dance with Freddy next.

_Broken glass rained down in streams_.

Jeremy seized.

His hand lost grip on the can and the golden liquid foamed and poured out across the tabletop. He leapt up and snatched a few floral paper towels. He dabbed at the spill all the while tears streamed down his face. He could not control himself now. He collapsed to the chair as his hands rose to cradle his head.

He never should have returned.

With harsh fingers, he pulled down the skin of his face and wiped the tears from his lashes.

"One more time," he whimpered to the silence about his head. "I'm so close…"

So close to straightening out his life. So close to putting his dark past behind him.

_I told Mike to leave her be, I told him who she was_…

Jeremy took the can to the sink to drain it. He watched the liquid swirl down the disposal before turning to drop the can into the trash. A glitter of silver caught his eye. Upon the kitchen counter, he saw his father's pocketknife. The metal was beginning to rust, however, the blade was still as sharp as the day he was given it. Jeremy opened the pocketknife and stared at the sharp, curved blade.

One more time.

Jeremy closed the pocketknife and slipped it into his pocket.

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Jeremy had seen how busy the old diner was during the day, but never had he seen it at the pizzeria. Children ran by him laughing and dancing. There was music in the air and happiness. If he had let it, it would infect him as it did the others, but his mind was too far caged to be tainted by frivolity. He adjusted the hat atop his head and straightened the golden name-tag pinned to his breast pocket.

_Jeremy Fitzgerald_.

The letters sparkled.

He found the day guard who ushered him to the show stage where the children gathered. The guard spoke words that Jeremy could not hear over the screaming and singing and just like that, he was gone. Jeremy stood with his back against the wall, putting as much distance between him and the animatronics as he could. Even though they sang, danced, and smiled, he felt their eyes watching him. With arms laced, Jeremy gripped onto himself. He felt the weight of the pocketknife in his pocket. Somehow, simply knowing it was there put his mind at ease.

The world around Jeremy was blurred and muffled. He could not hear the children laughing anymore. The happy song that filled the air was only dull sound. He breathed slow, keeping his eyes on the animatronics as they came off the stage to engage the children. He felt himself push into the wall as Toy Freddy walked past him. The machine's head spun on its joint, facing him. Glossed, lifeless eyes stared down at the security guard who refused to break gaze. The bear passed, continuing on its route to greet and sing to the children.

Hours slipped by, though to Jeremy it felt as if he still was stuck in a cage facing the opening of his nightmares with only a flashlight to protect him. The children slowly left with their families and before long, the birthday party was over.

The day guard approached Jeremy and clapped a hand upon his back.

"You see, it wasn't… uh, that bad, was it?"

Jeremy forced a smile.

"You know, I, uh… got the checks a little early today. Yours, uh, yours I put back on the security desk. Why don't you head out a little early? I'll probably stay a while. Looks like people still think we're open… I'll, uh, I'll let them enjoy themselves a bit before sending them off."

Jeremy gave a nod and headed toward the security office.

Behind him, the day guard called with a smile. "It's been great working with you, Jeremy."

The further he traveled from the sound of the Fazbear band's music, the quieter the building became. The once measured walk became brisk. The sooner he could get the check, the sooner he would be able to leave. Jeremy entered the office with eager eyes. Sitting atop the desk was a single envelope supporting thick-penned letters, '**J.F.**'. A full breath filled Jeremy's chest before he walked closer and picked up the envelope. He opened it and glanced at its contents to see the printed company check with his name. A weak smile pulled across Jeremy's lips and he turned to leave.

That was, he intended to leave, but found himself frozen in place as his eyes fell down to see a smiling statue of a boy standing at the opening of the room. Jeremy's hands trembled as they gripped the envelope and he could not find the words to scream. The boy's eyes were wide and his smile even wider. With a skip, it leapt up at Jeremy who did not respond as promptly. The balloon boy did nothing but steal the envelope from the guard's hands and just as quickly, sprinted away.

"H-hey!" Jeremy choked as he gave chase. "Give that back!"

The repetitious laughter of the statue echoed against empty halls as it ran down the corridor and took a sharp turn with the guard in quick pursuit. Against tiled floor, Jeremy slid, attempting to keep pace with the little statue that led him further into the building. Jeremy's curses grew heated as the statue prevented his capture by slamming doors behind him. The guard's temper was rising.

At last, the little statue ran into the management office and shut the door behind him. Jeremy slowly approached, doubling himself over as he gulped breaths. His eyes rose to the fogged glass of the door before he cracked it open to peek inside. His eyes flickered across the room, not finding the little boy at all. Jeremy opened the door and quickly shut it, and locked it, behind himself. If the balloon boy were truly in this room, he would not get out. Jeremy would make certain of that.

He moved slow, creeping across the tile in search of the small statue. He wondered if he should beckon it out of hiding, or if stealth was a better way to deal with the boy. Before his search could proceed, he found his envelope lying atop the desk.

"Little piece of shit," Jeremy mumbled as he crossed the glass case of a Freddy suit before reaching the desk.

Before his fingers skimmed the pristine paper, the phone sitting at the corner of the desk shrieked a ringing scream that made Jeremy tense in surprise. His eyes looked down to the scrolling text to see an unknown number accompanied only by the words:

_It's me_.

Jeremy's tongue flickered against his dry lips as he felt the pounding of his heart rival the strength of war drums. Quickly, he snatched the envelope and made his way to the door, leaving the phone to ring behind him, but forever it did not ring.

The call went to voicemail, a voice called out into the silence.

"_Hello, Jeremy_."

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Jeremy stopped.

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"_It's been a while, hasn't it_?"

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Jeremy found himself turning toward the desk. With gaping eyes, he stared at the blinking red light recording the call he did not answer. Slowly, Jeremy walked back toward the desk.

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"_How long did you think you could hide from me?"_

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The air turned to needles around him, stabbing and sticking him in every pore. He became weightless and empty. This was only a dream. This was not truly happening. It was just a dream.

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Jeremy picked up the phone.

He waited and listened, but found the other end silent. He swallowed and forced the words from his throat as he stared down upon the still blinking light.

"Who the fuck is this?"

He heard a laugh, low and rumbling, that sent shivers down his spine.

"_You know who I am_."

Jeremy's lips began to quiver. Overwhelming him were vast extremes of emotions. He felt rage, sorrow, and all that stood between. The quiver of his lips began to spread like an infection that trembled every inch of his body as he stood alone in this wide room. His hand gripped the phone tighter as he spewed in anger, "Leave me the fuck _alone_."

With that, Jeremy slammed down the phone upon its holder.

"… _I'm afraid I can't do that_."

Lost in unfathomable disbelief, Jeremy stared down upon the phone that still spoke out to him. He felt cold as he heard the voice continue. As it spoke more, the voice became venomous and hateful. The warmth of the room dissipated at the sound of Jeremy's demons being resurfaced from repressed memories and haunted thought.

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"_… where are they, Jeremy?_"

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The man's head shook as tears began filling his eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about." He felt the cool of the street and the spray of glass that fell like rain against his clothes. He lost his grip on a small floral backpack and the cackling laughter of his best friend faded to silence.

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_"… where did you hide them, Jeremy?_"

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You live so close, they said. It would be too easy. He told them he didn't want to. He said it wasn't right, but they didn't listen to him. He was the youngest of the group. He was just a kid. They told him he would be one of them if he did it. She was so small. Just once, they told him. She would not put up a fight.

Darkness grew over the glass of the door. Something lurked beyond the office. Something waited for him. Jeremy grew weak, allowing a cry to break through the teeth he gritted. Slowly, he pulled away from the phone, keeping his eyes on the darkening door. "Please," he begged.

"… please… just… let me go."

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"_**WHERE ARE THEIR BODIES, JEREMY**_?"

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A scream pierced the air as the glass case behind Jeremy shattered and from the tempest of glass stormed the golden Freddy. To the floor, Jeremy tumbled and writhed as a dark shadow drew over him. His body became weighted as he lay beneath the machine, looking up in horror at the black, hollow eyes that haunted his every dream. He screamed though he did not hear it. The boundaries of nightmares and reality blurred in a violent haze as Freddy loomed over Jeremy with jaws wide. A hateful voice boomed from the depths of black metal.

"**WHERE IS SHE**?"

Jeremy cried out. Pain shot through his limbs as an unbearable force compressed him against the tiled floor. He fought for control of his body. The shards of glass around him sliced into his arms and neck. Blood flowed down into the cracks of the tile, staining the floor a dark red. The machine leveled its head with the man's, staring down into the gaping eyes that screamed in terror. Jeremy's hand loosened from beneath Freddy's weight. His fingers dug swiftly into his pocket. The world around him grew dark. His sight was failing. Inevitable darkness. The nightmare embraced him.

"**WHERE IS HER BODY**?"

Squirming beneath the weight of the machine, Jeremy freed his arm and with what strength he could muster, he swung up his hand and stabbed the knife into Freddy's head. A spew of spark lit the eyes of the suit as the machine seized above the man. Jeremy pulled out from beneath Freddy. He did not look back as the machine fell to the ground, a mess of oil seeping through the mouth and eyes of the suit as smoke coiled ominously into the air. His body was flung to the door. His shaking, bloody hands fought with the lock before he ripped open the door and sprinted out into the hall.

He gulped breaths as he sprinted. His steps uneven by the damage his body sustained, although he had not been aware of it just yet. A door opened behind him and there came a violent shriek of anger. Jeremy refused to turn back. The thundering sound of footsteps raced after him. The sound of which split the air and the only sanity that Jeremy clung to. Tears poured from his eyes and sweat dripped down his face. It was right behind him. Gaining on his every step. A scream brewed behind Jeremy's lips as he did not have the strength to continue.

"_PLEASE, DON'T HURT ME_!"

His footing, misplaced, and to the floor Jeremy tumbled. His shoulder collided with the wall as his body twisted to turn and look behind him. The only sight he saw was a blood red fox's wide jaw that held rows of dagger teeth. It was the only thing Jeremy would see, and the last, as the jaw clamped down, broke bone, and spread blood.

With the man's head shattered beneath his teeth, Foxy gripped Jeremy's lifeless body and tore his head into two.

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><p><em>Thanks for reading. Let me know what you think. c: <em>


	8. The End

_Welcome to the last chapter of "We're Not Monsters, Act II". This has been a wild ride for me, and I would like to thank everybody who made this possible. Thank you for all your wonderful reviews, I truly hope you like this chapter. Enjoy!_

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><p>.<p>

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There were strobing lights and white cars. Voices filled the hallways as men flooded the scene. Hands were drenched dark in blood. Carefully, malleable chunks of brain matter were collected and wiped free of hair tufts. Children were crying as mothers pulled them away from the stretcher that wheeled out a body whose only face now was a mesh of bone and meat. Paramedics toiled and shouted. We need to create a new airflow, they said as they dug deep through flesh and pipe to bring air to the still living man. His throat contracted, a scream with no sound besides the gurgling of blood and skin.

Policemen swarmed the pizzeria now as the vultures to pick clean the carcass. The new animatronics were shut down and were being investigated. The owners were summoned from their homes with their lawyers in tow. Reporters came next. A home to childlike happiness became the reanimated corpse of a place of legend and horror, a curse that the community could not so easily lift.

With time, the place released its life unto the streets and darkness overwhelmed the pizzeria. The halls at last knew silence however short-lived it might be. Chica was the first to step from her shadows. Down the hall she crept, following the trail of blood that led her like breadcrumbs to the end of this dark story. When she came to the end of the blood trail, she hesitated. Though her eyes searched further for her path, there was none to be found. Before she turned to continue on, tears of blood dripped from the darkness of the ceiling and rolled down the edge of her beak.

Upon turning her eyes upwards, she saw a mess of wires and metal tangled in the rafters. As the metallic snake uncurled, the two foxes lowered to the world below. Mangle released the body of Foxy and retreated.

There were no words for Chica to say as she gaped in horror at the blood and meat stuck between Foxy's teeth. His eye was dark as a new evil consumed his wires. His jaw parted and closed, forcing more blood to drip from his metal mandibles as he replicated the act of chewing. The tainted blood worked its way down his throat and onto his beams and wires forcing a newfound desire to rise from the shadows.

"Foxy," the frightened Chica beckoned him from his own darkness. "Please, answer me."

The pirate's head lifted, the darkness of his eye staring out at the chick.

"It's not him you should be worried about," Mangle said from the shades of the rafters.

Chica turned her eyes back up at the white fox as worry and fear laced her gaze. "Where is he?"

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As Mangle slithered through the rafters in lead, Chica began to follow a new trail. A serpentine track of oil and glass led the two through the back rooms. With each new step, there came urgency. At last, Chica sprinted through the halls, tears hot on her wires as she screamed out his name. The only reply she received was the echo of her own voice on empty halls. When her fear could run no deeper, she found him.

He managed a crawl, desperate and weak into the banquet area. The suit he bore no longer held the gleam of gold, but of black oil. There was no light in his eyes as his body now lay lifeless and cold.

"Freddy!"

Chica rushed to his side. Her arms cradled him. Hands of happy yellow now turned black at the contact of Freddy's life liquor. Frantically, she swiped the glass and oil from his eyes hoping to unveil the light that lay hidden beneath the once golden suit. Fear tangled her wires as softly, she cried, "Wake up, Freddy. Please. It's over."

No matter how she tried to rouse him, he did not wake. His limbs were heavy and limp at his sides. Still, she wiped at the oil as the sound of weeping rattled her voice box. Her shoulders began to tremble and her head she shook in denial of the truth that lay dead in her arms. Gently, she nuzzled into his freckled cheek as her words fell weak and pained from quivering lips.

"Don't leave me. Please, don't leave me, Freddy."

Chica rocked him, gripping tighter at his body as she cried against his cheek. They did not remain in solitude long as from the threshold of the room came Bonnie and Foxy. At the sight of the lifeless bear held so tenderly in the chick's arms, the darkness from Foxy's eye dissipated and there was light once more. The feelings of anger and hatred were fleeting as now sorrow and disbelief took their place. As Bonnie stood back, unable to find the words to say, Foxy stepped forward.

The fox looked down upon the young chick with remorseful sympathy. Her light, violet eyes rose up to her companion as she fought the sorrow attempting to contort her face. "He's not waking up, Foxy. Why is he not waking up?"

"He's gone, lass," Foxy answered in a whisper.

"No," Chica snapped, her grip tightening. "No, he's _not_."

The fox lowered to his knee beside the crying chick and the body of Freddy. His hand he placed on her shoulder was kind, but firm, as he said, "It's time to let him go, love."

Chica's head violently shook as her lips she bit.

Fearing to push her any further, Foxy retreated from her side as a tortured grimace pulled at his face. He kept his back to the chick as he approached Bonnie and asked clandestinely, "How can we fix him?"

Bonnie's crimson eyes flickered to the pirate. "I'm not sure we can. There are no spare parts and his body is too damaged. Even if we could replace every bolt, there's no guarantee we could even power him on."

Together, they remained in silence as they watched Chica cry over Freddy's body. His face no longer held the twinge of anger or pain. He was peaceful and quiet as one would be in the most serene sleep. Except, this was a sleep he would not awaken from. As the day failed them and night settled in the halls and darkened the windows, Bonnie at last convinced Chica to leave Freddy. She hesitated before letting go of his large hand. Her fingers entwined with his, tightly. She feared that upon letting go, she might not remember the warmth she once found in his embrace nor remember the way he smiled or laughed. Her hand pulled upon his own as if beckoning him to follow with, but he remained. Chica bit hard upon pursed lips before releasing his hand to fall against the cold tile floor.

While the others had left, Foxy remained. Carefully, he lifted Freddy's body to rest upon one of the banquet tables in the center of the room. The moonlight from the windows cascaded down in silver curtains upon the gleaming decorations. Glimmers of dust danced through these white portals before settling upon the floor. For hours, Foxy stood watch over Freddy. Though he knew better, Foxy still waited for the blue light to flicker in the bear's eyes and for him to feel life again. The fox lowered his hand down upon the bear's chest where his mechanical heart lay dormant beneath his suit. He was the first machine, the father of their ever-dying family. Foxy's lips began to tremble for these tears he now shed in mechanical gleams were no longer for the friend he lost, but the decision that he ultimately made.

With gentle hands, he slid Freddy's blackened skeleton from the confines of its golden skin. He tossed the suit aside as it was nothing to him. It was not the face of his fond memories, not the face of his friend. Hesitantly, Foxy pried open his own suit and looked at the beams that caught fractions of silver light. He saw the clean wires and bolts that held firm—and yes, he knew what he must do.

A moment prior, he left to retrieve tools from service and repair. He stepped so quietly in fear to wake the others from their dreamless sleep. Alone, he toiled over Freddy's body. The bolts he removed and the processors he set aside. When he had sorted through all of the bear's parts, he began working on his own. He sacrificed parts of himself as he decided to take part of the infection that ended Freddy's life. He inserted the broken beams into his body and weaved the charred wires through himself. The more he worked, the weaker he became. His hand no longer was steady, his knees no longer able to hold his weight. The tears continued to gleam in his golden eye as he pushed further and further.

_We'll see each other again… this isn't a goodbye_.

Foxy collapsed onto the table. A soft cry whimpered in the darkness of his voice box. His body shook and strained as he forced himself to stand—as he forced himself to continue. Faintly, the fox repaired the stab wound in Freddy's head. When he was certain the fix held firm, he emptied his own supply of oil into the bear. The more of his life's liquor emptied, the fainter the shine of his eye became. When his body could take no more, he fell to the floor and descended into a dark sleep.

This way, he stayed, until Bonnie and Chica found him in the early hours of the morning. As Chica sat before the hunched over fox begging him to awaken, Bonnie looked at the progress made. His eyes turned toward the processor set aside. With careful hands, he cradled it and examined its damage. Everything inside Freddy would need to be replaced if they hoped to revive him. Bonnie's eyes lifted toward the stage where the Toys posed.

Chica lifted her eyes when she caught the rabbit making his way onto the stage. "What are you doing?" she called out.

Bonnie opened the decommissioned Toy Freddy's suit and quickly removed the mainframe. "Taking a chance."

The southern chick watched as Bonnie set down the new mainframe beside Freddy's old one and began working on transferring the old data chips. "With hope," Bonnie said. "The power of the new mainframe won't destroy the chips."

"And if it does?" Chica warily asked.

Bonnie's eyes lifted. "Then the friend we call Freddy will be wiped off the chip. If we can revive him, he won't be the same."

Chica remained quiet as she watched.

Bonnie's fingers hesitated over the police database chip still ported in the mainframe. Declining to remove the chip, he focused instead on switching out the Toy's data-chip with Freddy's chip. "There's still a lot of damage left in Freddy that needs to be repaired. Foxy was unable to replace all the parts before his systems forced him to shut down."

Chica's eyes returned to the sleeping fox as she asked, "Will he be okay?"

"He'll live," Bonnie answered. "But if the restaurant ever reopens, they may have him put under repair. It will take a lot to fix the damage he put on himself."

"Then let's make it worth it," Chica responded as she approached Freddy. "I don't care what it takes. Tell me what I can do."

After Bonnie finished his work with the mainframe, he began reconstructing Freddy's skeleton. Once the mainframe was reinstalled inside the endoskeleton, the two remaining Fazbears took turns donating their parts in order to restore Freddy. The further they pushed themselves, the more worry laced their wires. Still, they progressed. Even when their limbs became heavy with the weight of broken and dark beams, they pushed.

"Whatever it takes," Chica softly chanted as she removed yet another part of herself.

Bonnie stabled himself to insert the bolts, wires, and cogs. The process was tedious and long, but their dedication outweighed the odds. A castle of discarded parts became erected around Freddy's body. A break was taken long enough for Bonnie to retrieve the hidden skin from its hiding and return it to its owner. The sight of the familiar face rallied them to continue even when hope seemed fruitless. Chica was the first to fall in her deep sleep. Her systems refocused power to keep her alive. Fear laced Bonnie's eyes, which floated in the black void of his face.

"Please," he whispered. "Please, come back."

The final piece was installed and Bonnie braced himself.

With trembling fingers, he began the power sequence.

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Silence.

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Bonnie's hand fell.

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Freddy's life was gone.

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Gently, Bonnie's shoulders quivered and from the depths of his throat came a cry. His head lowered onto Freddy's chest as he wept. No matter the efforts, no matter the hours spent—Freddy was dead.

"Come back," Bonnie demanded in a hushed cry. "You have to come back."

His fingers gripped onto his friend, onto the only one who made him feel whole and not like the monster he was made into. He waited a while longer though no change occurred. When hope was lost, Bonnie weakly retrieved his friends and carried them back to their charging terminals in hopes he may at least save them. The rabbit hooked them into their chargers and looked upon the hope still bright on their faces. They did not know the truth yet, and Bonnie feared he did not have the strength to tell them. He lowered between them and entwined their hands with his. His descent into the darkness of his dreamless sleep was gentle, like a leaf falling and twisting in the wind to feel the cold kiss of a pond's lips. The light faded from his eyes no sooner than he shed his last tear.

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The melody of a music box filled the halls.

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In the darkness of the banquet hall where the body of a great leader lay in ruin, a new effort was made. Carried so lovingly in the black hands of the marionette was the small and simple music box. There was no smile painted on its lips now. No laugh was heard and no tear fell. The marionette's banded and pointed feet met the cool tile of the hallowed hall and onward it walked toward the giant lost to its eternal slumber. The only sound that could be heard was the gentle, sweet twinkling of the music box. The sound slowed and died before the marionette reached its final place above the corpse of Freddy Fazbear. Upon the bear, the marionette gazed with a somber sight. Into the machine's chest, the marionette lowered the music box to rest among the wires and metal of Freddy's heart.

As the marionette took up the turnkey and twisted it, words fell kindly from its painted lips. "Take this now, my friend. Embrace the darkness no longer and know light, for I give you the gift of life."

From the confines of the mysterious chambers of the music box, a darkness like oil flowed. Into the wires and metal, it stained like blood as music once again chimed. The marionette stood stoic over the corpse as it listened to a new song that the music box had never sang before. With a sighed breath, the marionette shut its eyes and bowed its head over the corpse. The music slowed and finally died, leaving the halls of the pizzeria in certain and sad silence.

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Blue eyes awakened with the gleam of light.

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As power rushed through Freddy's body, he felt new life course through his wires and beams. Through the dark void he spun and twirled, surfacing through death as one would the depths of the sea. He gasped for air, for life, and fell hard against tile. Much came with the flood of power. In his chest, he held the weight of something he yearned for long ago, which was denied to him upon his first request:

The chip of the police database.

While the memories of his last moments of life flooded his processors, there came new images. The name of the man who pierced him with a wicked blade and all his crimes. The more Freddy could remember, the more he was able to access from the chip left still in his heart. Reports and dates flashed before his eyes. Criminal photos of faces branded upon his servers filled his vision. With all this information and emotion resurfacing from the throes of death, Freddy could not believe what he had been so blind to before.

His hands clutched at the ground before the marionette's feet. He needed not look up to see the smile that danced above him for he felt its weight. His words were hot and pained and formed so weakly on his reanimated voice box, but their gravity still held true. Bitterness and sadness built on his voice as he spoke the words he feared more than all others. "He was innocent."

Freddy's head lifted as with an imploring gaze he stared up at the phantom shadow standing over him. "He was _innocent_," Freddy stressed with sorrow. "… and you _knew_."

"Yes."

"_Why_?" The anger rose and brewed like a storm rising through the wires and reaching new heights. Freddy rose, too. No longer did he lay in anguish upon the floor when he could match gaze with the one who truly damned them all. "You could have saved him. You could have stopped me!"

"How unsatisfying it would be if someone else unveiled the face of your murderer," the marionette spoke the words it said once before.

Freddy's chest heaved and shook as horror contorted the curves of his face. His head shook back and forth as the terror of his efforts hung heavy over his head. He accomplished nothing but ruining the life of a young man. He remembered the damage he dealt upon the Toys though they tried to stop him—because they _knew_. They tried to protect him, to stop him from making the mistake he had ultimately made. So many instances of the truth dancing before his eyes and he was so blinded by hatred that he could not see past its dark veil. Grief-stricken and horrified, Freddy faced his failure with indubitable animosity held only against himself. Again, he had failed his family when he swore to do what was best. Again, he damned them when he had the chance to save them all. Foxy, Bonnie, Chica; how could he face them? He failed Maggie and Maria and most of all he failed Fred Fazbear.

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_**Database searching: Fred T. Fazbear…**_

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"What?" Freddy gasped before the light of images filled his sight once more.

A list of crimes spelled out in thick letters scrolled down through his vision. Abuse, neglect, and forgery. A list of aliases and names the Fazbear did not know. Alfred, Thomas, Timmy. An aged photograph of a man whose eyes held no life, no compassion. A man that Freddy knew so well, but then he knew not at all. His fingers gripped tightly into the sides of his head as he tried to stop the images from appearing, as he tried to stop the words from forming before him in bright letters that struck him down. When the chip at last ceased its spew of reports, Freddy fell weak against the banquet table at his back.

"This… this doesn't make any sense. I don't… I don't understand—"

And then, Freddy remembered.

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_We all wear masks. A familiar face to hide the stranger within._

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_To die before knowing the truth… what a sad fate._

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…_faces stand out, don't they Freddy? You thought of them. You _saw _them. Don't tell me you don't know._

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_**Anything for a Fazbear**_.

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Freddy resurfaced from the spell like a nightmare, heaving and frightened by all that he saw and all that he heard. His eyes filled with tears as they lifted to meet the cold and cruel face of the marionette who stared down upon him with waiting eyes. The bear's head shook back and forth as he retreated from the marionette. "No," he hissed. "It's not _true_."

"He always loved children, didn't he, Freddy?" the marionette pushed. "Loved them in ways others could not."

"_Shut up_—"

"You were a trap," the marionette boomed as it floated from the floor and hovered above the bear. "You lured them in for him to take. You were _nothing _to him but bait. That is what we all were. _We_ led the lambs to slaughter. _We_ are the monsters."

Freddy retreated further as more tears filled his eyes. His lips, he bit, tearing pieces of his suit between the weight of metallic teeth. "How," he hissed in a cry. "How could you know? You weren't there."

The marionette returned to the ground before Freddy as a new look overcame its face. "_I_ was the first Fazbear creation. A mess of wood and cloth and a smiling face. The only light of day I knew was beneath the trees of playgrounds. With my smile, I lured them away and watched as he _defiled_ them." A steady stream of purple tears dripped from the puppet's black eyes as it hissed in bitter sorrow. "But that wasn't enough for him. He needed more. He always needed _more_… she loved me so… and look what I did to her. I watched as the life faded from her eyes and when it did, something _changed_. Something _stained_ me. It gave me _life. _I needed you to be the same… I needed you to stop him."

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_You and I, we're one in the same, aren't we_?

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"...I started at the data-chips… I stained you as I was stained. I gave you _life_… made you _different_."

Freddy lowered his head. "The other machines…"

"—they came next, but far too late. If I acted sooner, perhaps we would not be where we are."

The marionette and Freddy remained in silence as the puppet's words fell heavy against Freddy's thoughts. From the side of the banquet table, Freddy lifted and faced the marionette who regarded him now with kind and sad eyes. "Why did you not tell me when we first met? Why now?"

Floating through the moonlight, the marionette neared the machine before asking in a soft whisper, "Would you have believed me?"

Silence fell between them.

"… the others, have you told them?" Freddy's eyes flickered between the holes of the puppet's mask.

"I am afraid that burden must be left to you now." With a gentle breeze, the marionette's hand lifted and caressed the curve of Freddy's face. "My time here is nearly gone. What life I had left, I gave to you in the form of that musical heart you now carry. Do not despair, dear Freddy, for you and I are one now. Summon me when you wish, if ever you need my help."

The marionette's hand departed from Freddy's cheek as the puppet floated backwards into the darkness with a soft smile painted across its face. Before departing the machine, the puppet said, "Do not allow us to be made into _their_ machines, Freddy. Do what you must to save the children. All other lives, why, they're expendable… don't you think?"

Freddy watched as the phantom disappeared in the shadows while words formed hot against his wires.

"I promise."

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The pizzeria closed and a new location was found. Movers came, just as they had before, and crated the animatronics, preparing them for transit. Keep the old ones, we can use them, said the head of the company. The others were taken for scrap. Mangle, Balloon Boy, and the Toys were never seen again. While searching through the building, the movers could not find the music box or the puppet to which it belonged. Perhaps a child had taken it during the last opening day, some thought.

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"_We cannot let them open the doors ever again," Freddy told the others. "It is the only way."_

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With hope, and time, the restaurant could be reopened. The community would not soon forget the incident of '87, but perhaps if they went elsewhere, to a new city, money could be made.

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"_I can't do it, Freddy. We were made for children, we were made to bring happiness," Chica fought. "We're not monsters." _

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The stage was built and soon the animatronics inhabited it. Two guards would be hired and told to keep an eye on things. The company had a year to find an owner to manage the building, but the animatronics held a dark past and no one dared associate with a name that held only fear and horror.

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"_You're right, we're not," Freddy told them. "But now, we have to be."_

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A man picked up the phone and pressed record as his eyes shifted across dim monitors. Sweat built across his brow as he watched the percentage of power waste away to not. When he heard the beep on the other line, his voice shot from his throat in a flurry of words.

"Hello, hello? Hey! Hey… wow, day four! I knew you could do it. Uh, hey, listen, I may not be around to send you a message tomorrow. I-It's been a bad night for me."

Suddenly, the door upon the left rattled and shook as a fist pounded against the metal frame. Through the darkness of the office window, the man saw the gleam of a hook and the light of a golden eye. While the door shook again with the weight of a violent beating, the man reached over and flicked the lights off and on before stealing a quick peek out the right door, which he left open.

"… uh, hey, do me a favor," he nervously laughed. "Maybe sometime, uh, you could check inside those suits in the back room?"

The banging continued on the left door, but the man's attention was solely on the percentage that now dropped below ten. If he were not careful, he would not make it through the night. He never should have returned, he should have taken that job at the museum when he had the chance. What time was it? How much longer did he have again? His watch lifted and he glanced down to see the time, but that was not all he saw. Against the gleam of his watch, he caught the shine of blue eyes piercing through the darkness looming over his shoulder.

"Oh, no."

Just then, a music box began to chime.

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* * *

><p><em>Thank you all again so, so, so much. I really hope you liked it. Please, let me know what you thought. Did you figure out where I was going with this story before the ending? If I threw you for a loop, let me know! Thanks again, I had a lot of fun writing this. It's almost sad that it's over. I guess we'll have to wait for the third game and see if it doesn't inspire me again. Have a good one everybody! Maybe I'll see you again in the near future. C: <em>


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